Shattered Childhood
by phoenix catcher
Summary: Complete. Harry/Griffin. Harry befriends his next door neighbour only to be witness to an atrosity. He is claimed by the Paladins and is reindoctrinated. He takes the life they offer him but soon his past starts to creep up on him.
1. The Breaking

Shattered Childhood

Disclaimer; I own neither Harry Potter nor Jumper and any plot or character that you recognise I do not take credit for.

**Warnings; This story contains SLASH. Scenes of a graphic nature will be marked as such for those who wish to skip them.**

A/N; This is a story that has been bugging at me for a very long time and I finally started writing it while on my trip. I have another chapter ready which will go up soon but then other chapters will be delayed until the end of my next trip. Please enjoy.

Chapter 1; The Breaking

**1983**

Harry remembered staring out of the spare bedroom window in the early afternoon as he watched the family move in next door. He had been three and a half and still he had to pretend to be cleaning the window sill as he watched the two adults and the little boy his own age joking and laughing together with strong Irish accents. He remembered it so well because he realised right then how a real family treated each other. It had taken him only two days to find an excuse to be out in the back garden at the same time the boy had been out playing. He'd slipped into the hedge and that was the first time he had spoken to him, the first time of many.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

**1985**

Harry and Griffin tumbled through the front door of number six Privet Drive and instantly began stamping snow from themselves. It was late January and they'd both woken up to find Surrey blanketed in snow. Harry had gone about his chores waiting and wishing that Griffin would hurry up and come to his rescue and finally the knock had sounded on the front door and Harry's aunt had opened it to find the round form of a heavily clad Griffin. She'd been unable to think of an excuse to deny Griffin's request for Harry to join him.

"Harry Potter!" The heavily accented voice of Griffin's mother made Harry wince. "What on earth were you thinking going out in the snow dressed like that? Damn that useless excuse for an Aunt. Griffin!"

True to form, Griffin hid from his mother's wrath by hiding directly behind Harry who looked down at his feet. "It's not Griff's fault, mama Katie." Harry piped up in his best friend's defence.

"Griffin, you should have brought him straight here!" Katie Doyle told her five year old son. "Now he's soaked through and shivering. Both of you get upstairs, I'll run you a bath and I'm sure your Aunt will let you stay for dinner."

"But..." Harry looked up worriedly. His aunt had told him he was to be back before his Uncle.

"I don't care what that woman told you to do, Harry." Mama Katie told him soothingly. "I'll ask nicely." There was a dangerous tone to her voice that made Harry drop it. Ever since he'd become friends with Griffin his Aunt had tried to stop it without success, Griffin was simply too stubborn to give up. When his Aunt had started having to make excuses for his injuries and sickness, Mama Katie had started becoming suspicious and her husband had agreed with her and even though Harry refused to confirm anything, everybody knew the truth.

Harry was dragged upstairs by Griffin and into the bathroom. Mama Katie arrived a short few minutes later and began running the bath with practiced ease. Harry copied his best friend with slightly less enthusiasm and was soon sliding down into the water opposite Griffin. He noticed Mama Katie's stern look when she spotted the most recent array of bruises but they weren't even as bad as normal and he refused to complain about any of it.

"Your Aunt permitted you to stay for the night, Harry." Mama Katie told him quietly. Griffin smiled happily as he always did when he got what he wanted and Harry knew that Griffin had planned this. "I've got a guest arriving in the morning but it's nothing to be worried about, Harry."

Harry nodded obediently but even as a five year old he was quick off the mark, she was hiding something from him about this guest. She'd had guests before with him around and never commented on it. Why this time? They finished their bath and Harry dressed in a pair of Griffin's pyjamas and was led to his best friend's room.

"Now remember, Griffin." Mama said quietly before leaving them to their own devices. "No funny business."

Harry turned to look at her in surprise. She'd never said something like that before. Even if he hadn't come to stay in the last couple of months he'd never expect her to say something like that to her son. Griffin had been acting strange recently, well stranger than normal, and he'd had a few arguments with his parents even with Harry around. Harry had managed to gleam that Griffin wanted to tell Harry something but his parents had told him not to. Harry had come to the only logical explanation. They were moving and they were going to leave Harry alone.

He was wrong.

He was laying looking at the dark ceiling several hours before dawn with Griffin at his side. Neither were sleeping since Griffin was restless about something. This went on for a while before Harry got annoyed, turned onto his side and slapped his friend on the chest. "Would you quit it?"

"Sorry." Griffin muttered meekly.

Harry sat up and looked down at his friend in surprise. "Now I know something's up. Spill."

"Nothing's up." Griffin countered as he too sat up. Harry turned to look at him and crossed his legs.

"You're lying to me." Harry looked down, suddenly feeling rather meek. It wasn't his business if Griffin was lying to him. Harry was just Harry, why should he be important enough to be told the truth to?

"Don't do that, Harry." Griffin sighed and moved closer. "Don't go into one of those moods where you think you're less than everybody else."

Harry didn't speak until he felt arms around him. They'd always been close and since Harry always flinched away from Mama's hugs, Griffin had always been quick to embrace him. "Who is this guest, Griff?"

"It was Mama." Griffin told him. "She's had enough of what your Aunt and Uncle do to you. She's got a whole bunch of evidence and it's taken her so long which is why she never went to the police before. So she's invited this woman over tomorrow to talk to you and find out the truth and try to get you taken away from them."

Griffin was rambling which he did do rather a lot. Harry stared at him for a while before he started to cry. "They'll find out and they'll..."

"No, Harry." Griffin shook his head desperately and pulled Harry into another hug. "They won't be able to hurt you again."

"They'll find me and they'll kill me." Harry started backing up into the wall but Griffin followed him and pulled him away from the wall and cradled him. Griffin had always been on the short side for his age but never to Harry's extent and Harry fit against him nicely.

"I won't let that happen." Griffin swore. "In the morning this woman will come and everything will turn out brilliantly. You can move in with us and be happy for a change. You can be my brother. We can play every day and Mama will be your real mum."

Harry fell asleep like that regardless of how scared he felt.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

**The next morning**

It was still early when Harry woke up to find Griffin gone. Griffin had always been an early riser, getting up before Harry whenever they stayed together. Harry quickly changed into a set of Griffin's clothes that had been left on the bed for him, probably by Mama. He walked down the stairs just as somebody knocked on the door.

"That'll be my guest, Harry." Mama's voice pulled his attention away from the door and to where Mama was walking out of the living room. "Why don't you go join Griffin and Malcolm in the kitchen for breakfast?"

Harry nodded meekly and turned to the kitchen door just as Mama opened the front door. She greeted the person at the door with surprise that made Harry turn around at the last minute. She shouldn't have been surprised about whoever it was if she'd been expecting them. There in the doorway was a dark-skinned man with shockingly white, close-cropped hair. Two other men stood at his back. Harry had just been about to turn back to walk into the kitchen when the front man pulled out a gun and fired it.

Harry knew he didn't scream but he heard a small cry of pain come from his mouth as Mama's body crumpled to the ground. He turned and barrelled through the kitchen door and the edge of the door shattered as a bullet struck where he'd just been standing. Things were beyond chaotic for a few moments as he struck the table and pulled at Griffin even as Papa Malcolm tried to sort things out. Harry finally managed to pull Griffin down behind the counter just as the three men kicked through the door and an instant later Malcolm's angry shout was cut off and his body hit the ground.

Griffin choked at the sight of his father's body on the kitchen floor and he tried to stand to charge the three men but Harry clung to him to keep him down. "Griffin!" Harry grabbed his face. "Get out of here."

"Find them!" The man snapped. "Before he Jumps!"

Harry frowned at the words but pushed Griffin towards the back door, staying out of sight. "No, Harry!" Griffin snapped. "I'm not leaving."

"I'll just distract them so you can get outside." Harry was already standing. Griffin was the better of the two of them, he had to survive. Every part of Harry's mind screamed exactly that. Harry was out from behind the counter and he dived at the man that he'd seen kill Mama. The two tumbled backwards onto the floor and Harry felt a sharp impact on the side of his head just as he turned to where Griffin was standing up from behind the counter.

"It's that one!" The man on the ground with Harry shouted. The other men aimed their guns at Griffin and Harry heard himself scream desperately. The guns went off but at the same time a low throbbing boom smashed through the room, shattering the counter and the floor and sending ceramic dust into the air. When the dust settled, Griffin had gone. Harry collapsed back onto the floor as he fell unconscious.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

The Paladin sneered down at the boy with contempt. If the brat hadn't jumped at him so unexpectedly he would've been too small to knock him over and he'd have been able to get that single shot off himself. Now the idiots they'd assigned to assist him in this new case hadn't even been able to do the job and the Jumper they'd been watching for months had escaped.

But he'd seen the surprise in this boy's face when his friend had Jumped so he'd obviously not known the truth about the abomination that was his friend. He found himself pausing for thought, just for a moment, and then he made his decision.

"What do we do with the kid?" Mackinson asked him, nudging the boy with his foot.

"He's young enough and with the right training..." He paused in his thoughts as the two others stared at him in shock. They knew what type of training he was thinking about. Re-indoctrination. "He'll be a Paladin."

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

**2002 – Africa**

Harry narrowed his eyes at the ground below the helicopter two dozen feet below him before standing up on the edge of the open bay door. The others in the Paladin strike force were strapping themselves into the lines ready to rappel down but Harry had another idea for himself. His combat trousers caught the downwash from the propellers and with only a moments concentration Harry exploded out of existence, swallowed completed by a spatial rift between himself and the ground below the helicopter. He dragged a sizeable amount of air along with him and he could hear the twin thuds from his entry and exit from the rift as he reappeared on the ground.

He'd first Jumped when he was eight, three years after the Paladins had rescued him from him relatives when his Uncle had tried to kill him. He had blanked everything before that but he had seen pictures of the extent of his injuries, he'd barely been alive when the Paladins had found him. They'd raised him and looked after him and even though he became a Jumper they saw the potential that having a Jumper on their side brought with it, even if they hated anything to do with Jumpers. Harry had accepted a long time ago that he'd always be hated for being a Jumper but as he saw it Jumpers weren't so bad. If he could be a Jumper and be good then it wasn't predisposed that Jumpers were murderers like the Paladins claimed.

The strike force landed around him moments later and like always Harry saw the disgusted looks on their faces. Harry turned around from within the circle around him, taking in the scenery. He was the only one among the eight person team that was armed only with a knife in his boot and another at his waist. He had other weapons at his disposal.

Harry shuttered his eyes and the nagging sensation was there instantly. It was very feint and days old but Harry tracked the Jump from the theft to here even if the rift had fully closed. It was an ability that tied between what the Wizards did and what the Jumpers did. A sixth sense that allowed him to track Jumpers. "He went east." Harry told them quietly, barely above a whisper.

"Let's move then." The team leader ordered and the group split in front and behind Harry before trekking through the dense forest towards a set of mountains in the near distance.

Almost an hour after they arrived Harry heard a snapping branch and he, along with the others crouched down. Harry didn't draw his knife but his hands came up. Before orders could be given a bolt of green magic shot from the foliage and slammed into the man on Harry's right sending him down onto the ground as though he were a puppet with its string cut.

Harry rolled to the side as another bolt of magic shot from the trees before he threw up his hands. He'd known from the age of nine that he was a Wizard but the Paladins refused to allow him to use a wand. They hated the Wizards just as they hated Jumpers and they didn't want Harry to be traced through a wand. Without being able to use magic through a wand Harry's magic had found another route and so, when he turned fifteen, it had escaped and he'd created an ability.

A massive gust of heated air swept over them as a magically fuelled rift exploded through the trees where their Wizarding attackers hid, the trees splintered apart and the ground exploded. Harry and the team of Paladins flattened themselves to the ground as the force of the explosion rippled over their heads. When they raised themselves there was no sign of their attackers.

"You could have killed us all!" The team leader snapped.

"You didn't seem to have everything under control." Harry pointed out without emotion as his hard emerald eyes turned on the man. Two of the Paladins were dead on the path through the forest. "Let's just get this done with."

"Pull a stunt like that again and I'll put a bullet in your head, Jumper!" He spat on the ground at Harry's feet.

"And then you can explain to Niles why." Harry shrugged and turned away from the man, lingering just on the edge of Jumping in case the man got any ideas. It would be the sixth time it happened if it did.

Harry felt it as a Jumper appeared just in front of the team and before he could move two of the men fell with knives in their chests. A second thud announced the Jumper's departure and Harry barely paused before leaping forwards though the Jump scar after the other, leaving the team behind. This guy was good.

Harry reappeared just as the Jumper was pulling a gun. He knew this tactic, the Jumper would Jump back and put a bullet in somebody before leaving, harrying the team over the course of hours. The Jumper spun in shock that somebody had followed him and the gun followed to aim at Harry. Harry Jumped across the room but instead of turning to face him the Jumper, quite rightly, Jumped out of the area.

Harry paused this time, tracking the Jumper with the rift still opening, waiting for the Jumper to give up waiting for Harry to follow and Jump again. It was barely two minutes later when he Jumped again and Harry Jumped himself through the two rifts appearing just behind the lax Jumper. They were in a bustling street in New York and their arrival had gone unnoticed amongst the early morning commuters.

The Jumper Jumped again and Harry sighed and followed. As soon as he saw they were alone he sent out a blast of his magic, tearing the ground up under the Jumper and taking out his concentration. The Jumper tumbled across the floor and Harry knelt on his chest, taking in his features. He paused as a nagging feeling spread through him and it was all the time that the other Jumper needed as Harry felt his leg kick up at Harry's stomach. Harry went with the kick and rolled to the side pulling his knife at the same time with his left hand and holding out his right.

The other Jumper stood up with an angry glare but didn't speak before Jumping. Harry sighed and was about to Jump through the same rift when another opened to the right and a truck appeared mere metres from his right, barrelling towards him. Harry Jumped out of the way and swore angrily only to have to duck and roll as a knife was sent flying at him. Harry sent a random explosion to his left and the force of it buffeted him even as he Jumped again. He stopped and took a look around. The other Jumper was standing about fifty metres away from him down what was obviously a disused railway line. He was simply standing under a tree watching Harry.

"I can go all night, mate!" The guy yelled at him.

Harry frowned at the strong Irish accent as if he should be able to recall it but nothing came to him and he was sure he'd never been sent after this Jumper before. Harry swung up his arms and a rift exploded through the air around the other Jumper but just as it hit Harry saw him Jump away. Harry swore under his breath again. His own explosions ripped apart the Jump rifts so he wouldn't be able to trace him. He sighed, sheathed the knife and Jumped back to the Paladin that had helped raise him. Mary Niles.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

Harry walked out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist and turned down the corridor of the Niles home where he'd lived since he was six. For about sixteen years. He turned towards his own room and found Sophie watching him. "I heard what happened."

"You wouldn't be reading mission reports again would you, Sophie?" Harry lifted an eyebrow at her. Sophie was the closest thing to a little sister he had. She was eighteen and had been here when Mary Niles had taken him in. As far as he knew she'd been born just after Mary Niles had moved to Canada so Harry had to assume that her father had lived back in America. What had happened to him was still a mystery. She and Harry got along well and apart from Mary Niles she was the only one of the Paladins that didn't care that Harry was a Jumper. Harry was also extremely protective of her and had a reputation for being brutal to people that tried to hurt her.

"There are advantages to working in tracking." Sophie shrugged.

"Were you looking for me?" Harry prompted when he realised she was leaning against the wall and probably had been waiting for him.

"I thought you should be warned that Roland Cox is downstairs talking to mum." Sophie told him. Harry frowned but shrugged nonchalantly. Sophie snorted and slapped him on the shoulder. "He's being really serious, Harry."

"I know, I know." Harry chuckled. "I'll be careful."

"They're not liking the fact that you abandoned your team to chase the Jumper and then failed." Sophie frowned worriedly.

"If I'd been successful that wouldn't be an issue." Harry shook his head.

"But you weren't." Sophie pointed out.

"He was really good, Sophie." Harry countered, "And he threw a truck at me!"

"Harry!" Mary's voice reached down the hall from the floor below.

"Yes, mum?" Harry yelled. He'd always called her that.

"You have a visitor!"

"I'll be down in a moment!" Harry yelled back before turning to shrug at his sister. "The Devil calls."

"Try not to say that in front of him." Sophie tapped him on the arm before walking passed him giving him a kiss on the cheek as she went. There were only two people in the world that Harry would put his life on the line for. His mother and his sister. Michael Niles was a stuck up bastard that hated Harry and was just like the other Paladins.

Harry changed quickly and with only a step he Jumped downstairs into the kitchen right on the other side of the table to his mother and Roland Cox, one of the best of the Paladins but in Harry's opinion he was a monster. He hunted them down as if they were all evil and Harry knew that wasn't true and he also never made it pleasant. Harry had seen some of the pictures of what remained of the Jumpers the man went after.

"I want you ready to go to America tomorrow morning." Roland told him bluntly but Harry had seen the twitch of his hand towards his belt where Harry knew his knife was secured. Harry completed his motion and lifted a glass of orange juice from the counter and took a drink.

"For any particular reason?" Harry asked rebelliously.

"To track down a particularly slippery Jumper involved in a bank robbery." Roland told him sternly. Harry shrugged. "Just be ready to go."

"Do we know his name?" Harry asked.

"David Rice." Roland told him. "It shouldn't be all that difficult, we have a name and a residence."

Harry studied them both for a moment. Roland just looked eager to get after a Jumper but Mary was acting strange. It would take either Sophie or himself to notice but she was scared of something and it had something to do with this David Rice. "I'll be ready." Harry told him bluntly when he realised that his mother was getting nervous with Roland there. Harry became defensive and cold in an instant and Mary glanced at him in surprise. It wasn't long after that when Roland saw himself out. Harry walked to the door holding it open so he could make sure Roland got into his car.

"Next time, Jumper." Roland spat as he paused and turned to look back at him in the doorway. "Don't let Griffin get away."

Harry frowned and barely saw Roland continue to the car. That name was familiar to him but he didn't know where from. Perhaps a record he'd read before. He rubbed at his left temple as a headache rattled his nerves and turned when he felt a hand on his back. "Headache again?" His mother's voice was soft and concerned, so like Sophie's and so different from all the other Paladins.

Harry turned and shut the front door. "It's nothing, mum." Harry told her simply but he didn't miss the concerned look on her face that had nothing to do with his pain. "Are you going to tell me what's got you so riled up about this mission?"

"I don't know what you mean." She tried.

"I saw the way you closed up when he mentioned who he was hunting." Harry countered. "What's so special about him?"

"He's just a Jumper." She argued.

"Just a Jumper." Harry sighed and turned away from her. He had a foot on the stairs before he felt her grab her hand.

"I didn't mean it like that, Harry. You're proof that not all Jumpers go bad." She assured him.

"And what about this David Rice?" Harry asked without turning to look at her. "What did he do to deserve what Roland Cox plans to do with him?"

"Nothing." The words from her mouth were so quiet that Harry almost didn't hear them but they had him turning in an instant. Words like that could get you a very unpleasant interrogation.

"Who the hell is he?" Harry Jumped and was an inch from her in a second. "I know you and you're scared about something."

She opened and shut her mouth a few times obviously trying to come up with something to say but in the end it was as if the energy simply went out of her. Harry steadied her gently and she looked up into his emerald eyes with her own light brown ones, just like Sophie's. "David Rice..." She whispered. "Is my son."

Harry let go of her in shock and she was forced to steady herself. "Sophie's brother?" Harry whispered. He had known Niles wasn't Sophie's father, even if it wasn't possible in the timings she also held no resemblance. It was a logical conclusion. "Does she know she has a Jumper for a brother?"

Mary shook her head. "She already has a Jumper for a brother. You."

"You know what I mean." Harry countered angrily. "What happened?"

"He was four when he first Jumped and I panicked. I couldn't hand him over to the Paladins so I disappeared. I was pregnant at the time and Sophie was born shortly afterwards and David was raised by his father. I keep tabs on him in case he gets in trouble." Mary sighed. "Seven years ago he reportedly drowned after he fell through weak ice and I lost track of him. I think he must have discovered his Jumping ability."

"And he robbed a bank?" Harry mused. "Still, seven years without getting on our radar is pretty good going." Mary was leaning against the banister and Harry moved down the steps so they were eye to eye before he continued. "What do you want me to do?"

"What do you mean?" She frowned.

"Roland is going to confront him tomorrow and he'll expect me to track him if he gets away." Harry pointed out.

"_If _he gets away." Mary sighed.

"I can make sure he does." Harry deadpanned. "But it's hard for a Jumper to run from me."

"He's a good boy, Harry." She whispered. "I don't want to see him get hurt. Just give him a chance."

Harry snorted and turned for the stairs again. "Sometimes I wonder what else you're hiding from me." Harry didn't miss the violent flinch from her but pretended he hadn't. He'd always known she hid something from him but evidently it wasn't about David. "I have a brother who is a Jumper." Harry mused to himself before grinning. If Mary was right and David was a good guy then he'd do what he could to protect him, even if that meant going renegade.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

End Chapter


	2. Memories

Shattered Childhood

Chapter 2; Memories

**New York City – 2002**

Harry found himself thanking whatever deity was out there that he rarely needed to use normal forms of transportation. A seven hour flight from Scotland to the United States was simply too long for him and he'd been fidgeting the whole way. He was a Jumper, a free spirit, not a normal human who had to walk everywhere. Even watching the latest films in the headrest in front of him hadn't taken off his anxious need to get off of the plane through any means necessary and unfortunately any attempt to enjoy himself on the plane had been thrown out of the pressurised window because Roland Cox was sitting right next to him the entire time going between reprimanding Harry for his latest failure and snapping at him for fidgeting. The man could go screw himself for all Harry cared.

When they finally got out of customs Harry obligingly did a small hop to a storage centre and liberated one of the small silver briefcases put there for Paladins. He had a thing against arming Roland but he didn't have much of a choice. Roland hailed a cab as they left the building and Harry groaned as he was made to sit in the back for yet another boring, and slow, ride across the city to their destination.

They pulled up in front of an expensive looking apartment block and the two got out of the car and looked around. "Is he here?" Roland asked him.

"Does it look like I have x-ray specks on?" Harry asked snappishly.

"Can you sense a rift or not?" Roland asked.

"Of course I can." Harry snorted.

"Where?"

"There." Harry pointed along the street carelessly in one direction before spinning and pointing in the other direction before going around in a circle. "And that way, and that way though that one's a little further away. There's a few over towards the Empire State Building too and a whole bunch out by the docks."

"Alright, shut up already." Roland glared at him. "Is there one in the building?"

"A few." Harry shrugged.

"Any active?" Roland pressed and Harry sighed and shut his eyes to concentrate, this took a little more work and really he'd only been vague about the others. He opened his eyes again and shook his head simply. "Let's go then."

They went into the elevator without pausing at the desk into the building and Harry turned to him. "Are you going to give me one of those knives in that case or am I supposed to just arm wrestle him?"

"You're just here to track him if he gets away." Roland told him bluntly and Harry sighed and pulled out a knife from his own pocket, one he'd taken from the case before bringing it back to Roland. He flipped it over in his hand a couple of times and ignored the irritation from Roland. Harry didn't much care, if they found what was for all intents and purposes his brother up there he wasn't going to help Roland kill him. He would go renegade in a second and then it really didn't matter if he pissed Roland off first.

Roland did some quick work on the door lock of the apartment and let himself in with a little force on the door since it seemed to stick. Clearly it wasn't used very often. The apartment inside wasn't a cheap looking one, the main sitting room had an upper level running around two of the sides and leading through a door above the kitchen area on this floor, presumably a bedroom. Harry rather carelessly walked in and slouched down onto the sofa and let Roland sweep the entire apartment but as soon as Roland disappeared into the bedroom he Jumped himself up to the upper level and looked along one of the walls. It was covered by at least five hundred little photos showing some of the major sights of the world that Harry could recognise from his own experience and others that he didn't know.

It was a wall of Jump sites, most Jumpers relied on these pictures of places they'd been in order to Jump to them but they were only to jog their memory. Harry had never used them purely because he didn't want to leave those sites lying around for any Paladin to find. He studied the wall even after Roland came back out and looked over the wall himself disgustedly. Harry was merely memorising all of the prominent ones that he had been to as well so that if David managed to give him the slip he had a few locations he could quickly search for him though if the kid had any sense at all he'd forget about all of these places as soon as he realised that Roland had seen them.

A dull thud echoed through the room and Harry turned around and looked down towards the door where David was pulling off his jacket but then paused as if sensing that he wasn't alone. Harry leaned back on a support to the side of the photo wall as Roland smirked over at him and turned to look down. "Don't run." Roland told David as if he was giving fatherly advice but Harry just scowled. Partly at Roland for being who he was but also at David which was rather unjust of Harry but he simply wished the kid hadn't come home today.

The twenty-one year old turned sharply and looked up at Roland, his eyes flickered to Harry briefly but seemed to settle back to Roland who actually looked more threatening than Harry. _"Jump, just Jump."_ Harry chanted in his head. _"For fucks sake kid, just Jump. Fuck letting people find out and just sodding Jump."_

"Seven years we've been looking for you." Roland sighed as he began walking towards the steps leading down to the bottom. David just watched him as he jogged down the spiral steps. He clearly wasn't going to use his common sense and Jump to safety.

"And who are you?" David asked in the exact tone that somebody would use when talking to an intruder.

"_God's sake kid! Jump!"_ Harry thought angrily but stayed where he was leaning. He'd Jump in if he had to.

"My name's Roland." Roland told him, pretending to be amused, as if talking to a drinking buddy.

"What are you doing in my apartment?" David asked, lifting his hand to show his irritation as the two came to a standoff in the middle of the chairs down in the lounge.

"We'll get to that." Roland told him carelessly before heading across the room and pulling out a wad of small papers from his pocket. He held them up to David. "What kind of crook leaves notes?"

David was silent for a moment before eyeing the door quickly. "Uh... I think I need to talk to my lawyers." He tried to sound casual.

"Why?" Roland asked. "You're not under arrest."

"You're not the..."

"Police?" Roland finished for him and shook his head. "Anybody can rob a bank. What I'd like to know if how you robbed a bank without opening any doors."

'_Way to go, make him think you're a crime lord looking to hire.'_ Harry thought to himself as he slowly moved across the walkway and leaned on the railing. _'He's not going to fall for that one, you moron.'_

"Come on, I think you can think of something." Roland teased when David looked away, trying to pretend this was all a joke but Harry could see that he was beginning to really panic.

"Look." David shrugged him off. "If you're not the police, and I'm not under arrest. I think I'd like you to leave."

David walked past Roland towards the door and tried to open it only to find it jammed, just like Roland and Harry had discovered earlier. Roland sighed and reached into his jacket which he'd dropped on the back of a table earlier. Harry knew what he was going for. "You need any help with that?" He asked. "Been a while since you used a door, huh?"

Harry winced as he pulled out his shock stick. It was a weapon the Paladins had designed that could be shot at a target, embedded in the ground or used to tangle somebody in wires which incidentally delivered a rather powerful current of electricity into the captive. Stopping them from being able to fully concentrate on Jumping.

David stilled and turned slowly to face Roland, taking in the stick in his hand. "Oh, I know who you are." Roland's tone had become darker, more like a predator stalking its prey and that was exactly what it was even if David was the more powerful one. Roland began to stalk towards David as he spoke. "I know _what_ you are."

"This conversation's over." David stepped forwards as if to brush past him and Jumped but not before Roland stabbed the end of the stick into his side. David Jumped a few metres into the apartment but the sound of the electricity snapped across the room and David fell rather limply to the floor.

"This conversation's not over until you answer my questions." Roland growled out as he closed the gap again and rather heavily kicked David in the stomach. Harry bit his lip to stop himself from Jumping down there right now and Jumping David out who was trying to get away from Roland long enough to concentrate and Jump.

Harry could only watch as Roland used the stick to jolt David every time he tried to Jump which sent him crashing to the ground with cries of pain. Harry didn't know how long he could take this, just standing here watching but he really didn't want to tip his hand until he had to. Roland delivered a rather long bolt of electricity into David before crouching at his side. "Tell me. How did you last this long? Who's helping you?"

Harry saw David crane his neck to look up at his picture wall and with a double thud he Jumped from the ground at Roland's feet to the walkway only a few feet from Harry who stepped out of the way. "Jumpers!" Roland cursed and looked at Harry expectantly who decided to simply ignore him and look back at David as he struggled to reach for a photo. He caught one of a seaside pier and tried to Jump but a long distance Jump by memory was a lot harder than just Jumping across the room. There was a long drawn out rumble but he didn't go anywhere.

Roland used a rolling ladder to quickly scale up to the railing and shoved Harry out of the way. "Kind of hard to Jump with a thousand volts of electricity surging through your brain isn't it?" Roland stabbed him again before lifting him up and pinning him to the photo wall. "Who's protecting you? Give me an answer so I can go home."

David tried to suck in his breath but he was beginning to go rather limp and his eyes were having trouble staying open against the electricity flooding his body. "I hate Jumpers." Roland growled and with a heave he threw David straight of the edge of the railing and down onto his coffee table with a rather unpleasant crashing sound. Roland leapt after him, bringing his stick down in front and Harry was about to Jump to Roland and then away when David got control of himself and Jumped across the apartment. Roland turned and fired the stick. Wire shot out and dug into David's leg, pulling him back onto the floor as more electricity flooded him.

"You thought you could go on like this without consequences?" Roland accused as he planted an Earth into the ground. "There's always consequences!"

David screamed in pain and Harry decided he'd had enough. He Jumped right next to Roland with a loud thud and when Roland turned to see what he was doing David Jumped. Roland glared at Harry who Jumped away to the apartment's windows before Roland could try to hit him with something. David's own Jump had run short when the wire went taught and he crashed to the ground.

"You stay out of this!" Roland hissed at Harry. "I knew you shouldn't have been brought along."

Harry glared back at him. "You find it fun to torment at twenty-one year old kid?"

Roland turned back to David and the kid used that single moment's lack of focus to Jump further across the apartment and through a wall. Roland walked towards the wall. "You think you can hide behind a wall?" He turned to Harry. "You! Get him!"

Harry didn't need telling twice and Jumped through David's own Jump scar appearing a split second later in a small room filled with fluttering paper. Money. David was scrambling around the floor trying to get to a pair of wire cutters and Harry grabbed them. David rolled away but Harry just used them to cut the wire, relieving the kid from the electricity. David scrambled up against a set of shelves, almost sending them flying as he looked at Harry. "Get out of here, David!" Harry hissed.

David turned and grabbed a black bag from the ground and Jumped. _'Wonderful, now he decides to listen to me. All of this would have been so much easier if he'd done that when I was thinking it earlier.'_

Harry followed him through his Jump scar again and found David leaning on a wall in a small dusty bedroom. Footsteps pounded up the staircase and Harry looked at the door just before it snapped open and was caught on chains from the other side. "David, David!" A man shouted. Harry moved to the other corner of the room as David drew in steady breaths. "Just hear me out." The man continued. "I don't know if I'm going crazy here or not. I don't know a lot of things these days but if you can hear me... Just wait!" The door slammed shut and the sound of running feet told them he was running down the hallway.

David looked at Harry suspiciously but it wasn't long before the door burst open again onto the chain. "David! If you can hear me son. It's okay. You can come home anytime you want."

David seemed to lose some of the tension at the words and he sighed and moved closer to the door. "You're not crazy." David told him sharply before with a thud he Jumped. Harry Jumped after him just as the door burst open.

Harry found himself standing by the edge of a small lake and he was looking directly at a panicking David. "Who _are_ you!?" David stepped away from him.

"Just shut up kid." Harry told him. "They know your Jump sites now and they can track you."

"Who are _they_?" David hissed.

"It doesn't matter right now. Just get your head down somewhere and stay there." Harry told him. "That guy is going to track you to the ends of the Earth and you can't get caught by him. He'll kill you without a second thought and I'm supposed to help them."

"Then why are you helping me?"

"Because I'm a Jumper too. They think they have me on a tight lease but they don't." Harry told him, stepping closer to David. "They don't care if you're good or bad. They kill Jumpers but I'm a weapon for them so they don't kill me."

"Then why is it different for you now?" David accused, looking like he was going to Jump again but only not doing it because Harry could follow him.

"Because you're my brother." Harry told him and stepped closer. David froze and that gave Harry the opportunity to slip a small piece of paper into his pocket before he Jumped away. He Jumped four more times before blowing apart his last rift before he finally Jumped back to his home. Hopefully David would do as he suggested and find somewhere to hide out for a while but if he got into any more trouble then he had the number for Harry's cell phone even if it would always be monitored. If David had to call him then Harry didn't care if the Paladins found out he was helping him.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

Harry Jumped into the middle of his bedroom and sat down on his bed and cradled his head as he thought about everything. He wasn't sure where all of this was going. David was a good Jumper but he was relatively naive to the life style and he was making the mistakes that would lead the Paladins right to him and Harry had no delusions that he could remain secret if he kept helping him. Eventually he'd have to put his lot in with David if he was going to keep him safe. He didn't have any other options and he didn't know any other Jumpers to ask for help.

Even as Harry thought it a spike of pain shot through his head ending up just behind his eyes. He winced and rubbed at his head before feeling a trickle at his nose. He wiped his nose with the back of his hand automatically and frowned when it came away bloody. He stood up just as his door opened and frowned at his sister, Sophie. "I heard you come..." She trailed off seeing his bleeding nose. "What happened to you? Did someone hit you?"

Harry shook his head and moved into his bathroom and turned on the taps over the sink and cupped his hands before cleaning off his face. He dried off before finally turned back to Sophie. "I wasn't punched. It was a headache."

"I think you should go to the medics." Sophie told him. "You said you'd think about it but this is getting worse."

Harry closed the gap and grabbed her arm though he made sure to be gentle about it. "I can't go to the meds about it."

"Why not?" She asked.

"Because I think that it's to do with them." Harry hissed. "I think the Paladins did something to me and I'm starting to remember it."

"Remember what?" Sophie looked shocked.

"I don't know but if I go to them about my headaches they might do something to me." Harry told her.

"Do you think Mum and Dad know?" Sophie asked.

Harry shut his eyes but nodded. "I see it in Mum's eyes when I have them."

"What are you going to do?" Sophie asked.

"I have a lead." Harry shrugged. "But I'm a little busy to follow it up right now."

"We're talking the truth here right?" Sophie asked. "About what exactly?"

"I think it's about before the Paladin's took me in." Harry frowned. "I don't really remember anything from before they took me away from my rela...." Harry gasped as another stab of pain split his head in two and he rubbed at his head. Luckily it didn't start another nosebleed but he felt Sophie touch his arms gently and let her pull them down. She leaned up and kissed him on the forehead.

"You should know that Roland Cox reported that you chased after the Jumper." Sophie told him. "We're to report in when you get home."

"He got away." Harry shrugged.

"What happened?" Sophie frowned.

Harry just shrugged, unwilling to lie to his little sister who didn't even know that she had a full blood related older brother and it was him that they were hunting. He walked Sophie back to her room before heading down towards the living room to try to find his mother. She was reading a book by the window as she watched snow falling in the garden. "He's safe." Harry spoke quietly as he crossed the room to stand next to the window. "For the time being."

"Do you have an excuse for losing him?" She asked.

"I'll claim that he doesn't leave a trail that I can follow." Harry shrugged. "We all have our unique abilities."

"What about just following him through the rifts?" She pressed.

"He gave me the slip using normal methods." Harry shrugged easily. Any Jumper could follow another one by reopening the same rifts as they used and Harry could detect the rifts and through them to other rifts but none of their abilities gave them an advantage in following somebody on foot. Harry of course could sense them opening a rift once they'd given him the slip however and create his own to the same destination.

"Thank you, Harry." She sighed. "I know what sort of risk this is for you."

"Yes." Harry nodded. "I could be caught, tortured and killed."

She flinched violently. "Harry, I..."

"I get it." Harry said coldly. "He's your actual son. I was just foisted off onto you after the Paladins took me from my abusive family."

"Harry. I don't see you as just that. You _are_ my son." She raised up out of the chair but Harry closed the gap and put a hand under her chin.

"Then stop lying to me." Harry hissed. "I know you hide something from me about how I came to be here."

"It's nothing, Harry." She pressed. "Please don't go digging into it."

"My headaches. You know what they are and so do I." Harry pointed out. "Every time I try to remember I get them and whenever I get them you get worried about it. I'm going to remember eventually."

"Why does it matter?" She asked.

"Because it's part of who I am!" Harry snapped. "You're past life, before you left David, is a part of your life and you make decisions now based on that. You are willing to risk my safety to protect David based on a past life. I want the right to make decisions based on mine."

"There's nothing hidden there that you'll like, Harry." She pleaded with him. "And if you try to dig it up you'll only get the attention of the other Paladins."

"Then maybe I should leave?" Harry snapped. "Maybe I should go track down David and teach him what he needs to know to survive against you lot."

"Us lot?" She asked.

"How can you be a Paladin!?" Harry gasped out. "You are supposed to believe that Jumpers are evil. That we shouldn't exist but you worry about me and you sent me to protect your own son. Do you really think we're evil? David and I?"

She backed away from him and Harry deflated and sat down in the chair she'd abandoned. He cradled his head and jerked when he felt her sit on the arm of the chair and put her arm around him. She whispered senseless things in his ear and he relaxed slightly. "I don't belong with the Paladins, mum." Harry told her. "I should be out with David."

"Maybe you should and I wish you were but I also don't want to lose you, Harry." She sighed.

"If I'm supposed to make a decision I need to know everything." Harry pulled away from her. "Everything."

"You won't like everything, Harry." She told him.

"And what if I find out the truth in the middle of a dangerous situation. What if David dies because I uncover the truth and can't think straight?" Harry asked.

She sighed and stood up but pressed him back into the chair when he tried to rise. She looked out of the window for almost five minutes while Harry just sat behind her in silence. When she started talking she didn't turn to look at him. "The Wizards placed you with your mother's sister when you were fifteen months old. They neglected you just like you were told and your Uncle beat you a few times between when you were given to them and when you were five. You were friends with the boy from next door and you got along well enough that his mother filed many reports to the police about the way you were treated by your relatives. We only found out afterwards that his mother had contacted social services and finally gotten them to come and see you but that was too late."

Harry waited as she fell silent again. He knew not to interrupt or even remind her that he was there in case she changed her mind about telling him the truth. He didn't even remember having a friend in his early life. All he could remember was waking up in recovery with the Paladins.

"The boy you were friends with was a Jumper." She finally said and Harry flinched. "We'd been watching him for about two months and seen him Jump twice. Roland Cox was sent to kill him but when he arrived you were there. You'd slept over at your friend's house so that his mother could introduce you to social services. As Roland tells it he was about to kill your friend but you launched yourself at Roland and knocked him over. By the time Roland knocked you out your friend had Jumped away and you saw him do it. Roland realised that you didn't know he was a Jumper and decided to bring you into the group."

"Then why don't I remember any of that?" Harry asked. "I was told that you picked me up when my relatives almost beat me to death. Why don't I remember my friend or any of this?"

"Because Roland sent you straight to reindoctrination." She whispered and turned to look at him, tears streaming down her face. Harry flinched and Jumped, leaving the chair in favour of standing behind it.

"You tortured me?" He croaked out. "The injuries, all of the pain that you told me my relatives had caused? That was you?"

"Not me." She urged. "Roland and the Paladins were the ones to do it. I didn't know you existed until they'd finished with you and you were sent to me to look after."

"You're a Paladin!" Harry yelled though he was in shock. "You're one of them and they tortured me. They killed my friend's family and..."

He Jumped across the room, more out of habit than anything else, knowing that if he moved he couldn't be hurt. It was defensive more than anything else. He turned to her as he clenched his fists. "You... They... They forced me to be on their side by beating me. To knock out any knowledge of my friend." Harry turned and Jumped again until he was right behind her. "You didn't tell me. You've lied to me. You made it seem like you rescued me when you were the ones that caused me all that pain. You mislead me into fighting for you!"

"Harry...." She tried to reach for him but he Jumped back a metre to avoid her.

"You didn't let me have a choice!" Harry yelled. "You didn't like who I was so you beat it out of me to make me into a useful soldier. Jumpers aren't the monsters! It's you that are the monsters!"

Harry didn't know what to do but all he knew is that he had to be alone and he didn't care that his mother was deadly pale, crying and shaking as he Jumped from the room with a barely controlled rift that tore up the floor around him and sent a shockwave through the house. A second explosion had him in his own room and he Jumped to the door and locked it before falling down the inside of the door to sit on the floor. He cradled his knees and buried his head into them. "I'm a monster. They made me into a monster." He muttered to himself.

A knock on the door made him tense up and he glanced at his watch to note that he'd been sitting on the floor in his room for almost an hour. He ignored the knock at the door for a moment and it came again.

"Harry, it's Sophie." His little sister hissed through the door. "Open this door or I'll knock it down."

It was so absurd that he almost laughed but instead he stood up and unlocked the door and Jumped away from it even as the latch moved and it swung open. He Jumped again as soon as Sophie saw him and knew he was acting nervous. "What do you want?"

"What were you and mum fighting about?" Sophie asked.

"Some people don't think I should know the truth." Harry hissed and Jumped again making her spin around to see him again.

"Stop doing that." Sophie hissed.

"Are you going to beat it out of me too?" Harry asked and before he could think he'd Jumped right in front of her. Sophie wasn't to blame for any of this but Harry wasn't thinking straight.

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't pretend you didn't know!" Harry snapped. "They beat me!"

"I know about your relatives, Harry." Sophie sighed. "What does that have to do about anything?"

"They didn't beat me!" Harry yelled and grabbed her arm when she made to back away from him. "It's the Paladins that tortured me. Forced me to forget who I was so they could have a little soldier to train and turn into a monster."

Sophie gasped in shock and struggled to remove Harry's hand but failed. "Harry. You're hurting me."

Harry wasn't listening though. "You knew didn't you? You're a Paladin too. You must have known what they did to me. They came into my friend's house and killed all of his family and then Roland Cox just had to have a five year old boy to torture and reindoctrinate to be his little soldier!"

"Oh god Harry. That can't be true." Sophie was shaking now.

"And now everyone I know has been lying to me my whole life!" Harry gasped and sagged to his knees, releasing Sophie's arm. "My whole life's just a lie. They pretended to be my rescuers and they made me fight for them. I'm nothing but a monster that they put a leash on."

Sophie knelt in front of him and hugged him letting Harry bury his face into her shoulder. "It's not all a lie." Sophie assured him. "Mum and I both love you."

"Mum knew." Harry sobbed unable to control his emotions. Sophie tensed up but forced herself to relax.

"That doesn't mean she didn't love you. She protected you from the truth." Sophie promised him.

Harry pulled away and grabbed her arms tightly again. "Did you know?"

"Harry, of course I didn't." Sophie frowned. "I'd never have lied to you like that."

"I've got nothing left." Harry sighed and sagged his head. She stroked his hair for a moment and Harry just let himself be comforted before something occurred to him and his head snapped up. "Griffin!"

"What about him, Harry?" Sophie frowned unsure why he'd suddenly changed subjects.

"I knew him before the Paladin's took me." Harry gasped. "I can't remember but he was so familiar and I got a headache when I learnt his name."

"What are you talking about?" Sophie frowned.

"Mum said I used to know a boy my age who was a Jumper. Cox came for him and killed his parents and took me." Harry gasped out, squeezing her arms again desperately. "It was Griffin. I know it."

"How can you be sure?" Sophie asked. Harry sagged again and shook his head. The only way to know for sure was to talk to his mother and he couldn't handle that right now. "Look, Harry. Just try to get some sleep."

Harry didn't argue and let his little sister help him into his bed and let her tuck him in before he rolled up on his side and buried his head in his pillow. That night he'd dream of screams and Roland murdering people and when he woke up the next morning he had a little of his life back.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

**The next day**

Harry Jumped straight from his bedroom into the kitchen making Sophie jump and drop her juice. Harry's reflexes made him Jump across the gap and catch the glass making Sophie laugh and accept the glass back. "Are you alright?" She asked before returning to her food.

Harry sat down opposite her and poured himself a bowl of cereal. He took a spoonful and ate it before looking back up at her. "I'll survive." Harry shrugged. "You're right though, mum might have kept it from me but if she'd told me when I was younger I would have gone off the plot and the Paladins would have had me killed."

"She's been out of her mind this morning." Sophie told him. "She's just got a call from the office." Harry hummed to show he was listening but continued eating his food and let them fall into silence. It was about another half an hour when their mother walked in and blinked at the sight of Harry at the table. Harry glanced at her before going back to his cereal.

"Harry? I need to talk to you in my office." She kept looking at them and Harry looked up to meet her eyes and knew instantly that this wasn't to do with the night before. Harry stood up and his mother disappeared back out of the kitchen.

"Are you okay, Harry?" Sophie asked. Harry reached over and squeezed her hand and nodded before following his mother out into her study.

She was leaning against her desk rubbing at the bridge of her nose when Harry arrived. "What's the matter?"

"This isn't to do with last night." She told him.

"I know." Harry nodded. "But about last night. I can live with the fact you kept it from me but I can't live with what they did to me."

"What do you mean?"

"I can't be a part of this anymore." Harry told her and shook his head.

"I know you can't." She sighed. "And that leads us to the call I just got. Roland Cox tracked David to Rome, he's ordered all units to capture or kill him. I've managed to change the order so only two Paladin's are sent but..."

"If I go I'm going all the way." Harry warned her. "I won't come back to the Paladins. They'll hunt me."

"I'll do everything I can to keep them from getting to you." She promised.

"No you won't." Harry frowned at her. "You've already done enough. Roland Cox will already suspect you for cutting down the numbers going for David and when I disappear he'll distrust you even more. You can't do anything that will put you or Sophie in any danger."

"I don't like it but you're right." She sighed and moved forwards to hug him. Harry embraced her back.

"Where do I need to go?" Harry asked.

"Rome." She told him. "He's flying in."

"Flying in?" Harry raised his eyebrows in disbelief.

"He's taken a girl with him. An old school friend he left when he was fourteen." She told him. "I remember the name, she used to live around the block from us."

"How am I supposed to find him?" Harry asked. "If he's taken a plane then he hasn't told her what he is so he won't Jump. And Rome isn't exactly anti Jumper. The last time I was there I sensed two different Jump rifts."

"Meet up with the two men." She told him. "I ordered them to meet you at the designated point."

Harry nodded. "I need to ask you something before I leave." Harry told her. "The guy I was sent to catch in Africa? Griffin? Was he the boy I used to be friends with?"

She nodded. "I thought you might have remembered something when Roland shouted out his name."

"I got a headache." Harry frowned. "Do you think he'll..."

"Remember you?" She asked. "I don't know, Harry. You were both five but Griffin has been heard to suggest that he remembers that day vividly. You were there and if he's telling the truth I don't think he would have forgotten you."

"Do you think I'll get my memories back?" Harry asked.

"I don't know, Harry." She sighed and shook her head.

"I'll be seeing you then." Harry whispered and Jumped from the room, back into the kitchen making Sophie jump again and growl at Harry. Harry leaned down and kissed her on the cheek. "I'm going away for a while and I might not be able to ever come back but you'll see me again, I promise."

"Where are you going?" She asked.

"I'm not a Paladin, Sophie. I can't fight for them anymore. I should be with my kind." Harry hugged her before Jumping up to his room to change and grab a few things before Jumping out of the house and out of the country.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

**Rome**

Harry appeared out of his rift with a rending boom that shook the walls. He wasn't much for caring about being subtle right then and he wanted to put the two men meeting him off guard. It worked and he almost Jumped again just in case they decided to fire the pistols being pointed at his head. "Try to restrain yourselves." Harry drawled lazily.

They lowered their guns and turned their backs on Harry, not even saying a word to him. Harry followed them out of the small garage and got into the back of a Sedan, resigning himself to being carted around like a dog in a cage ready to be unleashed by its masters. He was used to it though and he didn't really want to talk to them anyway. They drove to a rundown hotel and got out of the car and Harry followed, taking his bag with him. "Listen up, Jumper." One of the men addressed him as he held up a key for one of the rooms. "Stay in your room while we find him. We'll call you when we need you." Harry took the key and turned his back on the Paladins but he kept an ear out for the telltale signs of betrayal like he always did but the doors of the hotel quickly swallowed him and he set about finding his room.

He spent the night in a fitful sleep and was up and showered early the next day and watched Rome from his window with his eyes and with his extraordinary sense. There was definitely a Jumper in the city but they Jumped around so randomly that he couldn't have guided the Paladins to him even if he wanted to. He was so tempted to just Jump to one of the rifts but he kept reminding himself that David was with a girl and he'd come here on a plane. He wouldn't be Jumping around the city if she didn't know about him.

Finally at about midday he sensed two Jumps at the same time and close together. There were definitely two Jumpers in the city now and his eyes searched the horizon trying to find out where they were and his eyes fell on the ruins of the great Coliseum about three miles away. He was trying to decide whether to risk it being David when his mobile rang and he answered it almost automatically. "What?" He asked knowing that it had to be the Paladins.

"We've tracked the Jumper to the Coliseum. We're about to engage. You're ordered to assist." The Paladin told him rather rudely.

"You want me there then?" Harry asked just to piss them off and got an angry growl in return before the line went dead. Harry grabbed his bag from the bed and Jumped from the room, leaving the keys to fall to the floor. He appeared on the top of the north wall in a section of the Coliseum that he'd been able to see from his hotel room since he'd never been there before and couldn't use a blind Jump. He dropped his bag onto the worn stone precipice and crouched down to get a view of the arena basement below. He could see the situation with one gaze and he didn't know what to think. He could see David standing rather nervously on the far side looking at the slowly approaching Paladins as they closed in on him with shock sticks in their hands but what really drew his attention was the second guy down there with his back to David. It was Griffin, facing off with the Paladins. Harry couldn't hear what was being said but whatever Griffin was saying wasn't going over well with the Paladins because they attacked.

They fired their shock sticks and electrified wires shot out at Griffin and David. Griffin Jumped a metre to the side and the shot went clear but David was too slow to realise the danger and he went flying back in the air as the wire pinned him to the wall. Harry stood up and Jumped down into the battle appearing behind the Paladin that had David pinned. He tapped him on the shoulder to make him turn even though it was pointless because of the boom from his arrival. As the man tried to turn Harry jabbed his fingers into the side of his ribs making him release the shock stick. The man looked at Harry in shock before Harry Jumped himself and the man out of the Coliseum and across the world in an instant, leaving the man in the middle of the Sahara desert to cope with the last week of his life alone.

He arrived back to see that Griffin had been just as busy and the other Paladin was on the floor having obviously fallen from the top of the Coliseum. Harry turned around as a rift dumped somebody behind him and he saw himself looking at Griffin. "You again?" Griffin sighed. "Didn't I kick your arse enough last time?"

Harry ignored him for the moment in favour of Jumping across to where David was struggling to rid himself of the wires. He received a few shocks as he dislodged the device but David was free in a few seconds. "You alright newbie?" Harry asked in amusement.

"How'd you find me?" David asked.

"How could anyone not?" Griffin scoffed, getting over his previous irritation at Harry to make fun of the younger of them.

"Unfortunately since you haven't been Jumping all day I wasn't able to track you." Harry told David before looking at Griffin who was now holding the baseball bat he'd had early for a while. "You on the other hand I've been tracing all day."

"No way you've been following me." Griffin argued.

"You forget what happened the last time we met." Harry pointed out.

"Yeah, you lost." Griffin pointed out.

"I made a mistake." Harry shrugged. "One that seems to have benefited us all."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Griffin frowned. Harry didn't say anything at first but merely looked at Griffin trying as hard as he could to remember anything about him. To try to find something familiar about him but he came up empty and it annoyed him.

"What's your interest in David?" Harry asked instead.

"What's yours?" Griffin countered.

"He's my brother." Harry shrugged.

"Fuck I am!" David shouted obviously having had enough of their conversation. "Who the hell are you guys?"

"He seems to disagree with you." Griffin pointed out. "And I'd be surprised if this newbie had anything to do with a Jumper who works with the Paladins."

"Who are the Paladins?" David asked.

"The enemy of the Jumpers." Griffin snapped before looking at Harry. "So what does that make you?"

"I was never a Paladin." Harry told him in a low hiss just before a scream was heard and they looked up to see a woman higher up in the ruins before she ran out of view. Harry continued regardless. "They forced me to help them by taking everything else I had away."

"Like what?" Griffin challenged.

"I don't remember. That's the point." Harry shook his head. "All I know now is that I have nothing more to do with them."

"That's rich." Griffin scoffed.

"You don't have to believe me Griffin." Harry shrugged. "But you knew me once. Before Roland Cox killed your parents. I might not remember it but maybe you do."

"Who the fuck do you think you are?"

Harry shut his eyes with a sigh before reminding himself that this wasn't the best place for the conversation. "Harry!" David yelled at him before he could say anything more.

"Just get the hell out of here David. Find your girl and get as far away as possible." Harry told him. "I'll find you later."

Harry watched as David Jumped away and his senses told him that he'd reappeared inside the ruins. He turned back to Griffin to find the other Jumper looking at him in confusion. "He called you Harry."

Harry sighed explosively. "It's not like it matters. I don't remember anything from before I was five."

"You can't be him." Griffin frowned, starting to look panicked. "Impossible."

"I can't prove anything to you, Griffin." Harry shrugged. "I don't have anything to offer but my identity as Harry Potter."

"You fucking liar." Griffin hissed before the air rocked as he Jumped out from the coliseum. Harry sighed and bowed his head in defeat and followed suit, leaving the coliseum behind him as he went in search of David to make sure he as okay. He should have known better than to think that he and Griffin could just be friends when Harry didn't even remember him.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

Harry could only watch as David was arrested at the gate and knew he'd need a little help out of trouble. Any other Jumper would simply Jump out of the cell but David seemed to want to deny his abilities whenever the girl was about. He Jumped clear out of Italy and headed for home appearing in the upstairs hallway just in case there were any Paladins about. He doubted that word of his betrayal had leaked but he had to be safe. He snuck downstairs and only when he'd determined that the only person at home was his mother he Jumped into the kitchen.

She flinched and almost dropped her mug of coffee onto the table top. "Harry?" She asked.

"They found David but two of them didn't have a chance against Griffin and I." He started.

"Griffin?"

"He was tailing David." Harry told her and refused to say any more. The Paladins had already shouldered their way into his private life and he wanted to cling to any secrets he managed to create. "David left with the girl but they were arrested outside the Coliseum. Someone saw the body after the fight."

"So David is in police custody?" She confirmed. Harry nodded. "It won't be long before Roland picks up that fact."

"What do you want me to do?" Harry asked.

"Take me there." She stood up. "I'll get him out."

Harry blinked in surprise but then sighed in defeat knowing that he'd failed to protect David and she clearly didn't think he could do it alone. "Harry, this has nothing to do with your ability to save him yourself." She grabbed his attention, clearly knowing what he was thinking. "It's about time I show myself to him. It might open his eyes to the more sinister threat out there."

"Like mothers that are working for the side that want to kill him?" Harry asked.

"Harry...." She warned, clearly not in the mood for Harry's dark brand of humour. Harry shrugged and held out his hand. She moved to the wall in the hallway and put on her suit jacket and grabbed her briefcase before returning and taking his hand and nodded and braced herself.

Harry tried to be gentle but taking someone else through a rift who wasn't designed for it wasn't a pleasant experience for them. It was like being squeezed into a small ball. To Harry it was actually a nice sensation but he was built for it. They appeared with a thud in an alleyway off to the side of the police station that Harry had seen when following the policemen who had arrested David earlier.

She sucked in a huge gasp of air and bent almost double trying to stop herself from being sick and Harry steadied her. "Are you alright?" Harry asked.

She nodded after a moment. "Wait here and I'll be right out." She told him. Harry nodded and watched her straighten up, pull herself together and walk out of the alleyway as if it was a perfectly normal thing to do. She turned out of sight and Harry relaxed against one of the walls and let his senses tell him if anyone Jumped in the city but it was calm which disappointed him. He liked being able to sense other Jump rifts, it soothed him to know he wasn't alone. The fact that he couldn't sense any old rifts from within the police station told him that David hadn't escaped on his own.

He waited patiently for almost ten minutes before starting to pace anxiously for another five minutes and then finally he turned at the sound of footsteps and saw his mother walking towards him glancing over her shoulder. Harry waited patiently until she turned to look at him and nodded. "Get me home and then..."

"And then I'll deal with it." Harry told her. "I'll protect him and you don't worry about it."

She nodded crisply. "It might not be safe for you there but if you ever need anything then come find me." She told him before reaching out her hand. Harry took it, hugged her and then Jumped, cracking the alleyway concrete as he departed.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

He returned to the exact spot in Rome almost a minute later with his favourite bag over his head and down at his side. A side satchel that Sophie had brought him for his sixteenth that he'd barely used before but that he didn't want to leave behind. It was the first thing that she'd gone out to get him for his birthday and she'd been proud of it especially when Harry had told his fourteen year old sister that it was the coolest thing he'd ever seen. It was actually just a plain brown soft cloth bag but it was one of the few things that Harry cared about enough not to leave behind.

He walked around the front of the building, looking very much the local rather than the tourist and he walked up into the police station to find out if David had gotten himself out yet and was half proud when he spotted David tumbling down the staircase not looking at all comfortable with this which Harry wasn't really surprised at. His mother had just made a rather flyby visit since she'd left him as a three year old. Harry ducked back out of the building before David or the girl he'd seen inside spotted him and ducked back into the alleyway in time for David to come outside and hail a taxi, half pulling the girl along behind him.

Harry heard David tell the driver to take them to a hotel about two miles away, one of the nicer ones so didn't bother to follow him in his own taxi, especially since he didn't have any Euros handy. Instead he jumped back to the roof of the coliseum, ignoring the police looking at the body down in the middle while he looked for the hotel which he knew the general location of and then Jumped to the small park outside it and merely blended into the crowd. People trusted logic far too much to really take in a Jumper appearing in their midst, they just brushed it off as their own eyes missing something when somebody suddenly appears in their way and nine times out of ten a mere apology makes them forget all about the Jump if they hadn't already apologised for not looking where they were going and gone about their business.

Harry was there in time to find himself a seat against a tree with a good view of the doors and watched as the taxi arrived only four minutes after it had left the police station and David and the girl got out and disappeared into the building. Harry watched with his senses in case David Jumped out of the building but true to newbie form he reappeared with the girl and hailed another taxi and quickly put her luggage in the back. Harry Jumped across the road into the revolving doors of the hotel and walked outside with quick steps in time to hear David tell the driver to take them to the airport and sighed before he turned the corner and Jumped to his own destination outside that very airport. Somewhere he'd been before a number of times.

As he reappeared and slipped inside to wait he decided that there was no way he was confining himself to an airplane if David decided to continue being lame and choosing to take the slow way everywhere. He didn't have to wait long in the end and was sitting on one of the seats eating a McDonald's burger when David and the girl joined the queue to get their tickets. Harry studied David and saw how anxious he was getting by his nervous glances in all directions but even though Harry didn't try to hide, David didn't seem to spot him.

The two were talking to each other and then David showed her what was in the bag he always carried about but Harry didn't see for himself though by the warring emotions on her face it wasn't brilliant. They parted soon after as David let her walk up to the check-in desk and he backed away. David turned straight towards Harry who didn't show any surprise that David had in fact spotted him and David walked straight towards him, glared and walked straight past him. Harry sighed and stood up, following him in time to see the restroom door swing shut and feel the presence of a rift. Harry turned on the spot and walked between two plant pots and Jumped, forming his own rift to David's destination and finding himself halfway up the side of the coliseum, blocked from view in all directions but into the centre.

Harry ignored David who was pacing as he looked over the inside wall and down at where the police had finally left the murder scene. Harry finally turned around to find David walking away from him. "Hey! Would you stop walking away from me?" Harry tried acting rather immature as he followed it. "It makes my life more difficult."

"Would you rather I Jumped?" David asked as he spun to face Harry making Harry backpedal so as not to walk into him.

"Actually yes." Harry grinned. "I can track the rifts. I could follow you easier that way."

"Nice incentive there." David grumbled.

"Chill, mate." Harry told him.

"Fuck off." David grouched. "Stop playing games. What do you want?"

"I told you that already, David." Harry sighed. "I'm trying to protect you."

"Why?" David pressed.

"For the love of..." Harry rolled his eyes. "I've told you that too."

"You told me you were my brother. That's bull." David glared at him.

"Why's that?" Harry asked. "You're mother left you when you were three and was given me to raise two years later. So technically I'm your adopted very slightly older brother. Got a problem with that?"

"Many problems." David narrowed his eyes at him. "Where's my mother?"

"I think you should stay away from her for the time being." Harry told him. "She'll be being watched by the Paladins in case I show up."

"What the hell are Paladins?" David demanded.

"The two guys in the coliseum ring a bell?" Harry asked in amusement. "They hunt Jumpers."

"Why did that guy say you were helping them then?" David pressed.

"Weren't you listening?" Harry sighed. "Your mother adopted me and raised me for the last fifteen years."

"So?" David raised his eyebrow.

Harry shook his head in defeat. "She's a Paladin. Jeeze, you can be slow at times. Why do you think she left you in the first place? She found out you were a Jumper and knew that to stay with you would only lead the Paladins to you so she severed all ties, left your father and you to have a life and started a new life of her own."

"Why were you helping the Paladins then?" David asked.

"Because I thought I was doing the right thing." Harry told him with a sigh. "Turns out I was wrong."

"Killing Jumpers didn't make you figure that out sooner?" David asked.

"Hey! I knew Jumpers weren't all bad but they only sent me after the bad ones and I hunted them." Harry pointed out.

"What about that other guy?"

"Griffin?" Harry clarified and got a nod in return. "Supposedly I used to know him but, well, let's not go into that. Basically I don't remember him anymore and he doesn't believe me because the last time we met I was chasing him."

"How do I know you're not still working for these Paladins?" David asked.

Harry rubbed at his head in irritation. "Look little bro, you can think what you want but I told mum I'd watch out for you and I'm going to do just that. You can make it easier on me by not trying to give me the slip or I'll just follow you anyway. It doesn't matter how many Jumps you make, I can follow you regardless. Remember, you're the newbie here."

"Okay, let's say you're telling the truth. Why do you care what happens to me?" David asked. "I get it that my mum sent you but why do you care?"

Harry frowned at him. "Two days ago I would say it was because I didn't want your family to go through the pain of losing you." Harry admitted. "But now I'd have to say because I've got nothing left in my life that meant anything to me before. I took the history I was handed by the Paladins for granted and now I've discovered that I've spent the last fifteen years of my life basing my decisions off of a huge lie. Now I know the truth it casts all of that into dark shadow and I want to cling to the parts of my life that don't depend on that lie. Namely you and Griffin."

"Well unless you happen to have his number I don't see how we're going to find him." David pointed out.

"Why do _you_ want to find him?" Harry asked.

"Because I didn't know anything about these Paladins until you showed up and I've got Roland Cox chasing me and I don't think I can get on with my life until this is dealt with." David told him.

"You really want to do that?" Harry asked. "I mean right now we're not involved in the war. I was on the wrong side before through some twisted sense of loyalty but right now we're clear. You and I can worry about ourselves and leave them to have their war."

"We're Jumpers, we should be helping the Jumpers." David told him.

"Alrighty then." Harry sent him a rather amused grin. "Just as long as you're sure."

"That still doesn't solve the problem of finding Griffin." David told him.

"He Jumped from down there." Harry told him.

"And you think we can use his Jump scar?" David asked.

"Wait, you've never...?" Harry raised his eyebrows up but he supposed that was highly likely. David never had met another Jumper before Harry and Griffin and he'd been the one being followed and not chasing. "Follow me." Harry told him abruptly before Jumping, only a short Jump down to the middle of the arena. Near to where Griffin had last been.

It wasn't long before David tumbled out of his Jump scar which while perfect for Harry was slightly out for David and it took getting used to. "I just..." David turned to look at where the Jump scar was although it was invisible but these things sung to Jumpers and they both knew where it was.

"We create the scars but they close on their own, newbie." Harry told him.

"Stop calling me that." David glared at him.

"Okay, Davey." Harry grinned. "The scars take on average about ten minutes to close up and anyone can follow you through them but it gets rather uncomfortable for them if they let them close up too long but you reshape the scar as you go through, forming it to yourself and opening it back up.

"How does this solve our problem?" David asked. "Griffin's scar is closed."

"I was just giving you a little Q and A session." Harry sighed. "Jeeze, you're no fun."

"Whatever, Harry." David rolled his eyes. "You're supposed to be the older brother so why don't you just get on with it?"

"Now, that's harsh." Harry said even though he grinned. David was clearly starting to loosen up to the idea of Harry actually telling the truth. "Most, but not all, Jumpers have an additional part to their ability to Jump. It's almost ninety-five percent of them but I think the last five percent just don't advertise the ability. Mine is being able to sense the old rifts that Jumpers leave behind. Right now there are about a dozen in this place, yours, mine and Griffin's from earlier."

"So you can sense the old ones...?"

"Stop being impatient." Harry told him. "Mine I can ignore and yours I can put aside. And there's one here that Griffin used to leave the last time. I can reopen it if I want to or merely concentrate on it and find out where it leads and open my own one."

"Then reopen it then." David suggested.

"I'd rather not, it's fully closed and like I said it's rather uncomfortable if you do that too long after it was first created." Harry told him before Jumping to the destination of Griffin's last portal, letting David work out that he'd have to follow.

A small thud of air was the only thing that announced that he'd arrived in a dimly lit space with a fine dusting of sand on the ground and completely filled with bits and pieces. He turned a full circle and moved to the side as David stumbled through the rift. "Hey, the newbie's got it." Harry grinned and turned to look at Griffin who was sitting in an armchair.

"You have got to be fucking kidding me!" Griffin groaned and threw down the controller for a game he'd been playing. "How... actually I don't care, just get out."

"That's not nice." Harry told him.

"I don't have to be nice." Griffin glared at him.

"Would you just hear me out?" Harry asked moving slightly closer. "I'm not going to try to convince you of anything because I don't have proof and even beyond that I don't have the memories to back up the story so I'm not going to even try."

"Then what do you want?" Griffin asked.

Harry raised his hands in surrender. "Why can't anyone just be nice?"

"You tried to blow me up!" Griffin almost shouted.

"You threw a bus at me for heaven's sake!" Harry argued right back.

"You wouldn't leave me alone!" Griffin hissed.

"He has that problem." David joined in making Harry and Griffin stop to look at him. "Don't let me intrude but I don't see what the problem is. If Harry was still working for the Paladins wouldn't he had just brought a dozen of them here with him?"

"See the newbie makes a good point." Harry shrugged.

Griffin Jumped suddenly, too fast for Harry to do anything about it and he found himself encompassed in a rift that he couldn't prevent himself from being forced through and he reappeared with a loud thud against the wall of the lair with Griffin holding him with an arm across the top of his chest, one small move away from his neck. Griffin was about his own height and his eyes stared into Harry's before they began moving across his features, taking in his hair, the pale scar hidden under his hairline, his eye colour, his nose, his lips, his chin. Harry didn't struggle and Griffin shook his head and in a move had Jumped away from the wall letting Harry sag back onto his own feet.

"You could be him. Prove it." Griffin announced.

"I can't." Harry told him. "I don't remember anything before I was five."

"Why not?" Griffin demanded.

"The Paladins claimed that my relatives beat me so badly that I lost my memory. They said they took me in and helped me to recover." Harry sighed.

"You're family did hit you." Griffin flinched finally admitting that Harry might really be who he claimed to be.

"Yeah but I found out the other day that it was Roland Cox and his guys that beat me bad enough to do this to me. They called it reindoctrination." Harry turned away from Griffin's face which had quickly moved to a desperately wounded expression as Harry spoke. David was listening carefully but staying out of it. "The woman that raised me told me that they'd come for you, killed your mum and dad while I was staying with you and then you Jumped out to safety and Roland decided to make me a Paladin by forcing me to forget everything about you. Is that true?"

Griffin just stared at him. "Damn it, Griffin, is that true!?" Harry yelled making Griffin Jump back across the room in surprise.

Griffin pulled himself together and his concerned expression vanished. "It doesn't matter now. We all sacrifice stuff for this war. My family's dead, your memory's gone. That's what the Paladins do alright, they go after the things you love."

Harry heard a thud from just behind him and he turned quickly to see that David had vanished and he frowned and looked back at Griffin who shrugged nonchalantly. "I'll go after him in a minute." Harry sighed.

"That kid's going to get himself hurt." Griffin told him.

"Like you just said what does it matter if we lose people." Harry told him with a little disdain. "You clearly don't care who I am. If you're so willing to forget about me now then I don't suppose it really matters that I have."

"How's that?" Griffin asked.

"Well clearly my relatives beat me for no reason. I've been abused and then beaten to a pulp to turn into a weapon and a discardable one at that and now you clearly don't give a shit about if we were friends or not." Harry sighed. "Maybe I was just that pointless in the world."

As soon as Harry spoke he saw the deep rooted shock go through Griffin's expression and had about half a second to think about that before his mind almost split in two and with a cry of pain he was on his knees. Pain lanced through his head and he barely registered the thump of a rift before arms cradled him and held him up.

"Harry?" Griffin asked.

"What?" Harry gasped out and pressed his hand into his head. "What did I say?"

"What?" Griffin frowned.

"What did I say that has something to do with the memories I've lost." Harry pleaded looking up at Griffin with watery eyes from the pain. He found himself mere inches away from Griffin's face and Griffin obviously saw something there.

"You are the friend I used to have." Griffin told him. "I've never heard anyone else speak like that. You used to always beat yourself down like that. Thinking you were less than everyone else. Whenever I didn't agree with you or you asked something you realised you shouldn't have you'd hide away thinking you were nothing."

Harry's mind echoed with voices and Harry could picture himself in a dark room with two beds made up on the floor and Harry sitting opposite a five year old boy with scruffy hair that could have been Griffin. Harry hissed in pain as the image faded and he looked up at Griffin. "Was your bedroom a dark red?" Griffin tensed up and frowned but then nodded. "Did I used to sleep there sometimes?"

Griffin fell backwards and sat on the floor and shook his head trying to clear it and Harry slowly stood up and Jumped. He went outside, not far but just outside of the tomb where Griffin had set up his lair. Griffin didn't follow him and Harry merely sat down on the sand in the shade of a tarpaulin.

Griffin appeared almost ten minutes later and sat beside him and handed him something. It was a photo and Harry studied it for a while. It was of two boys standing side by side. One was himself and the other was the boy in the flash he'd gotten. It was him and Griffin as small boys. Griffin had his arm over Harry's shoulder and they both looked like they'd just been running around.

"When was this?" Harry asked.

"It was taken a few days before..." Griffin paused. "Before it happened. I went back to the house a few days afterwards and picked up what I could including the camera.

"Was I happy?" Harry turned to Griffin who winced and Harry sighed.

"You were happy when we were together." Griffin told him and pointed to the picture. "You can see it there."

"But what about all the rest of the time?" Harry pressed.

"I used to try to keep you out of your house because every time you came out you looked a little sadder." Griffin told him. "And whenever the time came that you were going to go home you'd go quiet. When I told you that my mum had called social services to meet you, you hid against the wall in my room and told me that they'd kill you if they found out."

"You remember all of that?" Harry asked.

"Those few days are like movies in my head." Griffin told him. "It's all I see sometimes."

"But you were five, how could you deal with that? Why didn't you just run away from me?" Harry asked.

"I dealt with it the way I knew you wanted me to." Griffin told him with a small smile. "I hugged you."

"You hugged me?" Harry asked bewildered.

"You barely even let my mum or dad touch you and you never asked to hug me but I knew that you wanted it so I always kept hugging you." Griffin chuckled at the memory and Harry almost felt as if he could remember it himself. He sighed and dropped his head to look at his feet wishing that things hadn't changed between them and wishing that it was possible to have the same things now that he'd had then.

Griffin put an arm around his shoulders and hugged him to his side with a small laugh. "You haven't really changed, you know?" Griffin told him. "I can still tell when you want a hug but can't ask for one."

Harry didn't say anything and Griffin merely kept an arm around his shoulder for a few minutes before speaking up again. "I'll do what I can to help you remember." Griffin told him. "Even if we have to go back there."

Harry looked at him before sighing and standing up. He'd have to go find David soon in case he got himself into trouble. "Thank you, Griffin. I know you must have thought I was dead and it can't have been easy for some guy to suddenly claim to be..." He didn't really know how to finish that but Griffin offered him a small smile to show he understood.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

End Chapter


	3. Revelations

Shattered Childhood

Chapter 3; Revelations

**Surrey**

"We can't be long, Griffin." Harry pointed out although his words rang with anxiety as he eyed the completely unfamiliar suburban street in central Surrey.

"We won't be." Griffin winced. "I'm sure it won't be long before the Newbie get's himself into trouble."

"Where are we going?" Harry asked looking from the completely unfamiliar surroundings to his vaguely familiar friend. He had the proof he needed to trust that Griffin had been his friend but he didn't feel for Griffin like he thought he should do. His mother had told him the truth and his own snapshot of memory proved that he'd known Griffin and lastly that photo had told him that he'd once been happy with Griffin and he'd felt safe when Griffin had hugged him those few minutes ago but Harry still didn't feel close to the other man. He really liked him, he knew he was attracted to the other young man but it was a physical attraction and didn't have any feeling behind it.

"That was my house." Griffin told him pointing towards a house just like any other in the crescent. It was a cold house as far as Harry was concerned. He remembered the inside of one room, Griffin's bedroom, from that one snapshot but that was it, he didn't remember Griffin's parents or the love that Griffin had spoken with and it made him jealous and a little angry at the house before him. "It belongs to someone else now obviously but your Aunt and Uncle still live next door." Griffin told him pointing to the house one down which was identical apart from the manicured lawn.

"Perhaps we should go." Harry said as he realised his fists were clenched. "I don't remember anything new."

"Are you trying?" Griffin asked stepping in front of him and blocking his view. He grabbed Harry's fists and forced him to open his hands. Clearly Harry's pain was evident. "I understand why you wouldn't want to remember and if you don't want to remember then you don't have to. We could leave right now and..."

Griffin cut himself off and Harry looked directly at him wondering what had stopped him from finishing. Yes, they could leave right now and Harry could go on with his life never knowing where it had all started and Griffin almost seemed to be suggesting he could do that but why did Griffin look so hurt by that idea. Then he remembered that this history of his was tied to these two houses and to those that had been in them. His Uncle and Aunt in the house on the left and Griffin's parents, already dead, in the house on the right. Most importantly though it was tied irrevocably with Griffin. Harry could turn away right now and never remember the pain but then he'd never remember Griffin and right now there were four people that actually meant anything to him. His adopted mother and his sister, one of which had lied to him his entire known life. David who was his little brother even if they were about the same age but that had his own trials to deal with and couldn't handle a screwed up brother that he'd never known he had, not to mention a sister which Harry hadn't mentioned to him yet. And lastly Griffin but if he turned away now he'd never know why Griffin meant anything to him.

"Let's go in." Harry told Griffin. "I won't give up the chance to remember this life."

"It's going to hurt, Harry." Griffin was biting his lip.

"I don't want to never remember you, Griffin." Harry told Griffin simply and saw Griffin swallow, surprised it was that which was making up Harry's mind.

"I think we should go in and talk to your Aunt and Uncle." Griffin suggested. "Do you think you can do that?"

"I don't even remember them at the moment." Harry shrugged. "But I'm a trained killer, I'm sure I can handle them." Harry moved to walk past Griffin but was stopped when Griffin put his arm across Harry's chest and turned Harry to face him, wrapping his arms around Harry, holding him in place.

"You don't get it, Harry." Griffin sighed. "This place is bad. Just standing here with you is killing me. I can't believe I even brought you here and I'm going to hate myself for putting you through this later. For a child like you that place was hell, Harry. You were tortured there."

"I have to do this, Griffin." Harry sighed but tightened his arms around Griffin's back and put his head down on Griffin's shoulder, absorbing the strength of his old friend that he couldn't even properly remember. Griffin finally let go of him and Harry pulled back. "Griffin, when I get angry..."

"Which you probably will do. This guy is a mean piece of work even if you don't remember anything in there." Griffin nodded.

"Things blow up." Harry finished. "Not always accidentally. It's my defence mechanism. If I don't like something I rip it apart with a rift."

"Even though I'd like to see you do that to him perhaps we should avoid it if possible." Griffin bit his lip. "Just Jump out if you want to leave. I'll follow you."

"If my head splits in two get me out of there." Harry warned and Griffin nodded and took point, leading Harry up the drive and across the little path to the front door where he knocked.

The door opened a few moments later and a massive man blocked the view inside. Harry wondered briefly whether he had a larger door in the garage so that he could actually get into his house because he almost seemed unable to fit through the front door. Harry had expected many things but such an overweight whale wasn't one of them.

"Oh, Mr. Dursley, you haven't even tried to lose any of the blubber have you?" Griffin asked. "Mind if we come in?"

"Now, see here!" Dursley frowned especially when Harry flinched as pain blossomed in his head at the sound of Dursley's voice. Or at least that's what Harry thought it was caused by. Griffin turned to him, clearly seeing the flinch but Harry just shook his head. He wanted to continue, if he left now all he'd probably remember were vague things and if he was going to do this he'd go all the way. He wanted every bit of the Paladins indoctrination out of him. "Who do you think you are?"

"I was your next door neighbour." Griffin told him dangerously. "That was back when you used to torture my best friend. Now get out of the fucking way or I'll have this conversation so that everyone in the street can hear it."

Whether Dursley actually listened or not Harry didn't know but he moved back out of the way, probably more out of surprise than anything else. "I don't know who you think I am but..."

"Shut up, Dursley." Griffin ordered as Dursley waddled down the hallway. Harry kicked the front door shut behind him and Griffin waited for him to look around the unfamiliar hallway. Griffin touched him on the back of the hand, not enough of a gesture that Dursley could have noticed but enough for Harry to know he was there. Griffin followed Dursley down the hallway and Harry followed but froze when his eyes locked onto a door handle built into the side of the staircase. A handle attached to one of the wall panels, a partially hidden door probably leading to an understairs cupboard. He froze up noticing where the panel had been fixed at about waist height. A section had been cut out and replaced with another piece of wood.

Griffin turned to him when he stopped in the doorway to the kitchen and noticed that Harry had stopped. "Harry?" He asked quietly, unwilling to say his name loud enough for Dursley to here.

"That door..." Harry frowned but then his eyes blurred and for a moment he could have sworn that instead of the little replacement piece of wood there was a brass vent, the kind with lots of vertical slits with an inbuilt shutter that could close them all. "It used to have a grill in it." His hand reached out and his fingertips touched where the grill had used to be and he saw a sudden burst of white sparks. Pain blossomed through his head again and suddenly he wasn't looking at the hallway in the same way. The door was bigger or he was smaller and it was dark, not late afternoon like it should be and the door had its little grill. Harry was moving along the hallway trying to be quiet and he pulled open the cupboard door as little as possible. Inside was a dusty mattress and old ratty blankets. _His_ bed. He knew it.

The door slammed shut and Harry was suddenly looking at the, seemingly smaller, door without its grill. Griffin was so close that Dursley, looking on nervously from the kitchen, couldn't see what Harry was doing. Harry touched Griffin in the centre of his chest, unwilling to lean into his chest like every part of his body and mind were screaming for him to do. "I used to sleep in there." Harry forced himself to swallow and then turn from the door and look at Griffin. Griffin's eyes were cold and dark. Very dangerous but Harry felt that it wasn't directed at him. Harry wanted so much to leave right then and there so that he could sleep wrapped up securely in Griffin's arms.

"What are you looking at?" Dursley almost seemed to snarl and both of them turned to look at him. Harry nudged Griffin in the back and the other young man lead the way into the kitchen.

"Dursley, you really are a piece of work." Griffin growled dangerously. "I knew you were harsh on Harry but shutting him up under the stairs is just something else."

"I don't know who you're talking about."

"He's talking about me." Harry said bluntly and Dursley's eyes snapped to his face and frowned. "Why was I put here with you?"

"Get out of my house." Dursley sneered.

"Not without my answers." Harry snapped. "I haven't been able to remember this life until recently and now I want answers."

Just then a woman walked into the room. She was the complete opposite of Dursley, stick thin with a long neck and ugly features, not that Dursley's features were any better. Harry moved away from here, moving back closer to Griffin's side. "Dear, who..." She started before spotting Griffin and her eyes narrowed in confusion before sliding to Harry. She gasped and staggered back into the kitchen counter, clearly recognising the older version of himself.

"Looks like she knows what we're talking about." Griffin forced a laugh. "Petunia Dursley." He said half to her and possibly half to Harry in case he hadn't worked it out. "I used to sit in my bedroom window watching Harry slave away in the garden and see you watching him out of the living room and I used to wonder how you could do that to him all the time."

"We had nothing to do with what happened to your parents, boy." Dursley snapped to Griffin.

"I never said you did." Griffin gritted his teeth. "It's not my life you destroyed but..." He trailed off as he realised that Harry was leaning against the wall clutching his head. Harry didn't know what had happened but when Dursley had said that last word, 'boy', it was like a hot knife had cut right through his head, carving huge chunks out of it.

"Harry?" Griffin frowned moving to block him from Dursley.

"Say that again." Harry hissed.

"Say what?" Griffin looked panicked.

"Not you." Harry breathed deeply, trying to control the pain. "_Him_! Say it again."

"Say what?" Dursley frowned. "It's true, we had nothing to do with his parents."

"Say boy." Harry snapped.

"Don't think you can order me around you ungrateful little boy." Pain snapped through Harry's body. "Your parents were the same, happy to go get themselves killed off for their unnaturalness. That lazy no good father of yours knocked up that bitch of a mother and we got landed with you, boy."

Harry Jumped through Griffin and exploded out of a rift a couple of inches from Dursley. The power of his exit shattered the counter and the floor and gave him the momentum so when he slammed his arm into Dursley's chest it slammed him into the sink. Harry's eyes were burning with anger and the air throbbed as Harry's power wanted to destroy something. Griffin Jumped after him grabbing his arms and wrenching him back through the same rift and across the room. The air thickened as a rift threatened to tear through it all. Harry couldn't control it through his pain and he could only shake in pain and pure fury as Griffin did the only thing he could in the situation. He Jumped them out of the house and onto the street and Harry felt himself completely cave to the pain in his mind and he fell to his knees even as a massive thud of air ripped through the street.

Griffin followed him down, smoothing his collapse and then held him. Harry's head felt like it was about to explode and Griffin swore under his breath before forcing Harry to stand and shoved them both through a new rift getting them back to his lair before the emergency services arrived on scene.

Harry fell out of the rift and sank to the sand strewn rock floor and pushed his back into the wall and tucked his knees up. He buried his head into his knees as his mind flashed with images. Waking up in the darkness under the Dursley's stairs. Playing in the snow with a young Griffin. Being smacked on the back of the head with Petunia Dursley's hand. Rolling across Griffin's bedroom floor. A fist just before it hit his face. Eating dinner with Griffin's family. Being kicked in the side as he curled up on the floor. Hiding in the bushes behind the house because Dursley was having a bad day. Watching out of the window as the new family moved in next door and watching the little boy running back and forwards happily and wishing he was him.

Hands touched his knees and he looked up knowing that his face was strewn with tears to find himself looking at an older version of the face he'd just remembered so well. He'd learnt every little bit of Griffin's features when they were little. Learning everything about Griffin almost so as to free himself from his own hell. Griffin had been a very happy child but Harry had brought pain into his expression and now that he remembered everything he could barely stand that Griffin had lost all of that innocence.

"Harry?" Griffin tried. "Do you remember anything?"

Harry managed to nod, his mind feeling full and heavy. It made him feel half dead and the pain he'd just remembered weighed heavily on him but amongst all that pain he'd had Griffin and Griffin had made him happy and that was what he focused on. Griffin was crouched in front of him and when Harry straightened his legs Griffin sat down on them, basically sitting in his lap, facing him. Griffin caught his hands before Harry could hold his head again and pushed them down into his lap out of way so that he could lean in and kiss Harry on the forehead.

"I've missed you every day of my life." Griffin told him. "It was the one regret I had. I could never find you but I've never stopped searching. I never thought that they'd have abducted you and I didn't want to imagine that they'd killed you. Losing my mum and dad was bad enough."

"I'm sorry, Griffin." Harry sobbed out, trying vainly to control his emotions but it was difficult with the pain in his head.

"Sorry for what?" Griffin frowned.

"I'm sorry I forgot you." Harry ducked his head but Griffin moved faster putting their foreheads together, stopping Harry from looking away from him. They breathed together for a while and Harry was amazed that something so simple was alleviating all of his pain, sorrow and despair.

Harry barely realised that Griffin had moved minutely when Griffin's lips touched his own with a soft kiss that felt perfectly natural to them both. There was no sexual drive to the kiss only Griffin comforting him like he'd always done when they were younger except back then they'd never kissed. Griffin broke off the kiss and twisted to sit beside him against the wall and Harry sagged sideways, his head landing in Griffin's lap. Griffin began carding his fingers through Harry's hair and put a hand on Harry's stomach, twitching his fingers to stroke Harry's stomach. Soothing him into a light doze as everything caught up with him. Harry was barely awake when Griffin carefully moved them both to the sofa in the middle of his room.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

**An hour later**

Harry jolted upright when there was the very distinct sound of a rift. He was on his feet with his hand at his side, where a knife hid on his belt. "Fucks sake." Harry gasped as he saw Griffin. Griffin gave him a rather less than apologetic smile and Harry smiled back, relaxing himself and dropping his hands back to his side.

"How much do you remember?" Griffin asked.

Harry didn't know what to say. Just telling Griffin that he remembered everything seemed so lacking in description. He felt complete, he felt like a completely different person. And he felt disgusted at himself for what he'd been doing, what he'd _been_, all of these years. He didn't want Griffin to know he was thinking that though. Harry just nodded instead, not really answering the question but it seemed to satisfy Griffin who smiled widely. "How did you cope with that?" Harry shook his head but turned and Jumped across the room.

"That's going to take some getting used to honestly." Griffin muttered and Harry Jumped back even as he turned so he was standing right in front of him.

"What will?" Harry asked nervously. Had he already done something wrong?

Harry jumped when he suddenly felt Griffin grab his hands and it took all of concentration not to Jump backwards away from him. Griffin had been reading his thoughts again. Harry chuckled. "It's a nervous habit." Harry admitted when he realised that Griffin was talking about his nervous Jumping. "Paladins have a habit to trying to stab me."

Griffin pulled him into his arms. "If you really do have all your memories back then you'll know that I promised never to let anything happen to you as long as I was around to stop it. I meant it then and I mean it now."

Harry sagged slightly before pulling out of the embrace. His eyes were red from the migraine that still had his undivided attention but Griffin didn't seem bothered. "I want to go chat to my sister." Harry told Griffin who flinched slightly.

"The Paladin?" Griffin frowned.

"David's sister." Harry corrected. "My sister."

"You don't have to think about that life anymore, Harry." Griffin looked desperate.

"No I don't have to think about all of it. But I don't want to forget her either." Harry told him. "She was the only thing I had and I need to explain this to her so she knows I'm safe and..."

"And...?" Griffin prompted.

"Loved." Harry choked out after a moment Jumping back away from Griffin.

"Damn." Griffin muttered, Jumping across the six feet and grabbing Harry tightly. "Always loved, Harry. That'll never change. Get going and see the little sis."

Harry pulled back, wiped at his eyes and Jumped from the room heading for his home, or at least what had been his home.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

Harry reappeared with a small thud in the icy coldness around his home. It was too far north but he did like the cold, it was just a shock in comparison to the heat of Griffin's lair. He was well hidden and his decision not to Jump directly into the house was a good one since he could see a man he didn't recognise through the living room window. A Paladin though he had no clue why he was there, it might not even be anything to do with him. He didn't wait for long and Jumped into Sophie's bedroom getting a startled cry from her. She hastily covered up behind her shirt and Harry Jumped to beside the door and turned his back, raising his hands over his head. At eighteen she was studying for her exams and preparing to go to university, all the time working for the Paladins.

"Harry!" It was partly an admonishing hiss and partly a relieved sigh.

"Is it safe?" Harry asked, half teasing.

"Like it would matter." She chuckled. "It's safe to turn around."

Harry turned and shot her an apologetic smile which she returned with a roll of her eyes before opening her arms and giving him a come-hither flicker with her wrists. Harry grinned and Jumped across the room sweeping her up into a tight embrace. "I didn't think knocking on the front door would do me much good right now."

"After you killed two Paladins?" She asked without judgement. "Probably not."

"Firstly I didn't kill them both." Harry defended. "Secondly I was protecting..."

He caught himself before he could blurt out David's relationship to her. Or them though it didn't really matter. She frowned at him but misunderstood what he was getting at. "Another Jumper?" She guessed. "David Rice. At least that's what they're saying."

Harry shrugged before sitting on the edge of her bed and rubbing at his head. She sat in the chair by her desk and spun to face him, merely two feet from him when she leant forwards. "So hey..." Harry started before rethinking how to do this but then he decided he didn't have any more subtle way to do it so he straightened up and offered his right hand. "Let me introduce myself. My name is Harry Potter. Complete with the memories of before I was five."

She froze in shock before her hand came up and covered her mouth. Harry retracted his hand unsurprised that she wasn't amused by his tact. "You remembered everything?" She asked eventually. He nodded. "That's grea..." She was about to declare it as a good thing but then stumbled to a halt. "Is that a good thing?" She chanced.

"I prefer knowing." Harry shrugged twisting to the side as she stood, crossed the gap and sat beside him. "Turns out my relatives were worth forgetting." He turned back to the front staring across at the window as he finally let it settle into him what he had done to his relatives, unintentionally as it had been. He couldn't imagine any possible way they had gotten out of there. If it wasn't for Griffin he probably would have torn himself to shreds as well, perhaps even Griffin too.

"What did they do to you?" She risked asking him.

Harry turned to her with gritted teeth. "They thought I was a freak because they knew of Wizards even though I didn't. Starved me, made me do all the chores, beat me, locked me in a cupboard. They treated me worse than a stray dog that's found its way into your house." She flinched and almost automatically put an arm around him even though she was slight compared to him. She sank into his side, being every bit his sister.

"How did you get it all back?" She asked.

"Griffin took me there." Harry told her in a whisper not looking at her but staring back out of the window again.

"Griffin?" She frowned. "He was there when you were taken by Roland Cox."

"I was in his house." Harry nodded. "We were best friends. His mum was trying to rescue me from my relatives. Griffin lost me as well as his parents that night but he didn't forget me. He went back with me to help me remember and he saved me from them again."

"You went to speak to those monsters!?" She gasped straightening up and rounding on him.

"They couldn't have hurt me." Harry shook his head. "I could Jump out whenever I wanted to."

"Not physically hurt you but emotionally." She frowned. Harry flinched. "They did didn't they?" Harry turned to look out of the window again. "What did you mean by Griffin saving you again?"

"I lost control." Harry couldn't risk looking at her. He didn't regret what he'd done but she might think him a monster, maybe she'd rethink her idea that not all Jumpers were bad.

"What happened, Harry?" She asked without emotion which Harry took to be a bad sign but Harry was too frozen to think to Jump across the room like he normally would when nervous about something.

"The house was torn up in a rift." Harry muttered almost to himself. "Griffin Jumped him and I out before we got caught up in it too."

"But your relatives..." She trailed off as Harry flinched violently.

"You think I'm a monster, just like any other Jumper." Harry muttered to himself.

She grabbed his shoulder and he Jumped across the room, unable to stop himself. "Brother, don't you dare Jump away from me!" She'd used that tone on him before. Harry looked at her seeing a glare on her face. "If you ever say that you doubt me like that again I'll make you regret it, Harry."

"You don't think I'm a monster?" Harry frowned.

"I know you better than anyone else." Sophie pointed out. "You're not a monster, Harry, and you never have been. Your relatives were the monsters, Roland Cox is a monster. You're sweet and caring and you protect the people you care about. That doesn't make you a monster in my book."

"I shredded two people." Harry pointed out. "One of them my blood-aunt."

"They tortured a little boy!" Sophie gasped out crossing the room. Harry flinched and Jumped backwards, hitting the wall as he fell out of his rift. She narrowed her eyes at him and closed the gap again putting her hands on his shoulders as if she could pin him down in one place with such a gesture. "If I'd been there I would have killed them for what they did to you. They are the monsters. Don't you ever forget that."

Harry let his head sag down and she closed the remaining gap and wrapped her arms around him as he shook in relief. Sophie didn't hate him.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

End Chapter


	4. Rivalry

Shattered Childhood

A/N; This is the final chapter for this story. I'd just like to say that no matter how long some of my updates take at the moment I'm not cancelling any of my stories. If I do I'll put it in the summary so for all those asking for updates you'll just have to be patient. My life is just very busy right now.

Chapter 4; Rivalry

**Griffin's Den**

Harry appeared with a small thud of displaced air and instantly looked around for Griffin or even David but found neither within the Den. He sighed and looked around physically before focusing on his extra sense. David had come back briefly while Harry had been with his sister but the rift was barely closed so it hadn't been much more than ten minutes away. Griffin also had a distorted rift where he'd left and David had followed him. Harry focused through the distorted rift and found another couple through it so he stood just on the edge of the slowly closing rift and tracked the two across the world. With access to one of their rifts it was easy enough. He found them across the world, or at least the latest of Griffin's jumps and he made his own rift into the middle of an airport lounge just as David appeared out of Griffin's rift. The two blinked at him in surprise.

"How?" Griffin asked though he smiled at him.

"Tracked you through all the rifts since you left your lair." Harry shrugged. "We after the girl?" He asked David who nodded.

"Will you help us?" David asked before looking up at the arrivals board.

"As long as it doesn't involve you getting hurt. I made a promise." Harry shrugged.

"It arrived an hour ago." David bit his lip as he found the flight on the screen.

"You mean you didn't check the flight?" Griffin rolled his eyes.

"I was busy!" David gritted his teeth.

"You'd best go find her, David." Harry pointed out. "You know where to find us."

David nodded and Jumped out of the airport and Griffin turned to look at him. "Things go alright?"

"Well enough." Harry shrugged before creating his own rift back to Griffin's lair. Griffin created his own and emerged a split second after Harry. Harry flopped down onto the sofa with a sigh and Griffin shifted back and forwards on his feet nervously. Harry made a vague gesture towards his lap, opening his arms and Griffin took the offer and slid into his lap. Griffin was the bigger of the two but Harry liked the feel of him so close so much that he couldn't complain. Griffin turned sideways and let his head fall onto Harry's shoulder and Harry just held onto him tightly.

"You said well enough?" Griffin whispered, unwilling to disturb the peace.

"Yeah." Harry turned his head and pressed his face into Griffin's hair. He felt so safe and secure with Griffin so close, it was almost like they'd never been parted. "She knows what happened. She said they were the monsters, not me."

"Of course you're not a monster." Griffin whispered sadly.

"They were that bad?" Harry asked, needing the reassurance.

"They were worse than anyone I've ever met since then, Harry." Griffin turned and hugged Harry tightly. "I wish I could go back and rescue you. I could do it now. I could save you."

Harry found himself smiling into Griffin's hair. "There's still plenty of time for you to save me, Griffin." Harry told him.

"I'll save you." Griffin whispered. "I will. I promise. I won't leave you behind ever again."

"I know you won't." Harry told him and slowly shifted to lie on the sofa with Griffin lying with him. Griffin twisted them so that Harry was lying on him rather than under him and Harry snuggled into him so his face was buried in his neck.

Harry wasn't entirely sure how long they sat together like that but they came back to reality with a jolt when a thud echoed through the lair. It wasn't a particularly neat rift either and they shot up out of the chair as they noticed what was wrong. David had pulled a normal human through with him. A girl who was trying to get control of herself as her dizziness tried to send her sprawling. David looked utterly distressed as he tried to help hold her up but she kept shoving his hands away from her.

"Don't come anywhere near me!" She told him before turning and smacking him in the arm. David turned his side on her defensively.

"Christ!" Griffin hissed. "He just had to."

"Hush, Griffin." Harry sighed sitting on the edge of the chair. She looked around frantically and spotted the two onlookers and started looking for an exit which happened to be behind Griffin who looked seriously pissed off. Harry knew she wouldn't be able to really focus that well right now. He had enough experience transporting people. His mother and sister on a couple of occasions.

"Just look at me." David tried. "Please. I'm going to explain everything."

"This isn't some kind of clubhouse you know?" Griffin hissed at David, unwilling to play nice anymore. Harry stayed out of it because he really didn't know what to think. If David really cared about her then he knew he wouldn't be able to stop him from putting himself in danger but he really didn't want David to get hurt. Little brother and all that, even if they were sort of the same age.

"David, what's going on?" The girl finally asked seeming to calm down now that nobody was attacking her.

"How about I put you on the top of Mount Everest?" Griffin told her before looking at David. "Or maybe the bottom?"

"I'm trying to tell you..." David asked.

"They can follow you." Griffin waved his hand in irritation. "By bringing her here they can follow you."

"He's right, David." Harry piped up. "They have a machine. It opens wormholes and keeps them open."

"They can follow us anywhere and you brought them right here!" Griffin was getting angrier now.

Harry almost stood up to calm him down but then his sense screamed at him. "It's too late." Harry announced and Jumped clear across the room to behind David where they'd come through. A rift was starting to tear open. David's rift which should have been closed enough to not be noticeable to anyone but himself now. David walked quickly across the lair to the girl's side and Griffin Jumped up next to Harry with a worried look. They could all hear voices coming through the rift now.

"Where does this thing go?" Griffin turned to David. All anger gone now that he was worried.

"I'm sorry, Griffin." David gasped.

"Get her out of here." Harry snapped and turned back to the rift just as it flashed white. It was almost completely open and then anyone could step through and it would be Paladins, shooting first as always. "Now, David!"

David turned and grabbed her and they vanished through a rift. Harry felt another appear outside. Harry turned on the spot and together he and Griffin Jumped back across the lair to hide behind pillars. David reappeared and backed into a pillar just as somebody fell out of the rift. Seconds later another joined him.

Griffin's hand brushed his own and Harry reached in under his jacket and took the safety off of his pistol even as he pulled it slowly from the holster. He couldn't blast them within this place or he'd bring it all down around them. He wasn't going to take the risk that David and Griffin might not Jump out fast enough.

"Mom?" David gasped and took a step forwards. Harry frowned as he glanced at the wall. On it were security photos of his mum, some with targets around them. Griffin had been targeting her but Harry didn't find himself caring right now. David took another step forwards and Harry was about to Jump to him to tear him out of danger when the familiar sound of a baton discharge echoed and David went flying as he was caught by the wire and shocked. The wire lifted him clean off of his feet and pinned him up to the wall. He flickered as he tried to Jump but Harry couldn't help him without getting shocked so bad he lost his own ability to Jump and he definitely couldn't blow the place now.

David groaned in pain and Harry barely glanced at Griffin as he vanished from sight in an almost silent rift. "Why are you doing this?" David gritted out. "I've never hurt anybody."

"Not yet." The voice made Harry grit his own teeth. It was Roland Cox which didn't massively surprise him. "But you will. You all do." And that was Paladin propaganda at its best. Harry felt sick with himself right then. For most of his life he'd been a loyal, or almost loyal, lapdog for these people. "Sooner or later you all go bad."

"What if I'm different!" David gasped out.

"You're not different." Roland stated simply. Harry felt the rift before he heard Griffin's voice.

"I'm different!" He had a grin on his face. Harry could hear it in his voice and he heard the hiss of whatever weapon he was holding.

"Move!" Roland yelled even as Harry felt heat. He Jumped across the lair even as flames flooded the room. He reappeared at Griffin's side even as he watched Roland leapt out of the way. The other Paladin wasn't so lucky. Griffin sighed as he realised he'd missed and his inattention cost him as Roland leapt out from their left. Harry Jumped clear, trying to take Griffin with him but his fingers missed as Griffin was hit by a fist. The flame thrower went flying and Griffin was punched in the stomach. Harry Jumped closer with a blast that made Roland try to turn on him. His head snapped around and his eyes widened in shock just as Harry Jumped again and aimed his pistol.

The sound of the shot surprised Harry who hadn't thought he'd pulled the trigger. The room seemed to freeze as Griffin leaned on the pillar that was supporting him and Roland looked down to try to find a wound. That was when Harry felt the pain and looked down at himself. He felt pain in his abdomen and felt a warm stickiness soaking into his black t-shirt. He touched it in confusion and pulled away a bloody hand.

"No!" Griffin cried and Jumped, blasting passed where Harry was making Harry turn slowly just in time to see the burnt Paladin get blasted backwards into a rift with Griffin attached. He hadn't been dead, just wounded and he'd taken a shot at Harry. Harry kept the gun on a smirking Roland.

"I'm really looking forward to seeing her face when I take her your dead body." Roland teased mercilessly as Harry started to feel drained. His pistol wavered and he didn't have enough concentration to focus on what David was doing to try to escape. The pistol slipped from his fingers even as he fell to his knees. At least he wasn't dead already. He could cope. He gritted his teeth and focused and the air started to throb. "Oh, no you don't." Roland headed for him with his knife but a loud thud made the room shudder. Harry's attention flickered and his explosion faded.

He heard Griffin roar in anger and a series of Jumps before Roland was sent flying through a stone wall and out into the desert. Griffin turned to him. "Go." Harry told him. "Kill the bastard."

Griffin looked torn before Jumping out of the lair. Harry turned to David and tried to stand to get him free only for a wave of dizziness to send him back to his knees. His left hand clutched at his stomach and he collapsed backwards as his vision flashed white. Now it was starting to hurt like a bitch.

"Harry!" David yelled for him. "Jump to help!"

"Can't." Harry gasped even as he tried. It hurt too much to concentrate, just like if electricity was flowing through him.

He heard a commotion and felt heat. Griffin was fighting Roland but then it was suddenly quiet except for the girl, Millie, David had called her. "I'm only getting you down so you can get me out of here."

"Okay." David sounded desperate and Harry heard him fall as the wires parted under something like clippers. He struggled to sit up but the pain was still too bad. He needed a patch up job so he could help.

"Can you take me home now?" Millie asked.

"I'll take you." David sighed. "But it was always you. Ever since we were five. It was always you."

"Just take me home."

"David..." Harry gasped and heard the shocked gasp from Millie and the thud as David Jumped to his side and fell to his knees.

"Harry?" David asked. "Are you okay?"

"Who _is_ this?" Millie knelt on his other side and tentatively touched his hands to try to get a look at the wound. She gasped. "He needs a hospital!"

David inspected the wound. "He's my brother."

"Finally admitted you believe me, little brother?" Harry hissed out with a small smile.

"Shut up, Harry." David grumbled. "This isn't too bad. It went clean through but you're going to bleed out if we don't get you treated."

"Can you take us both to a hospital?" Millie asked and Harry saw David nod but they all jerked as Griffin tumbled into the lair with the wormhole device. He dropped it on the floor and rushed to Harry's side.

"Harry?" Griffin touched his bloody abdomen.

"Just a hospital, Griff." Harry told him tiredly.

"What did you do?" David asked eyeing the device broken on the floor.

"Without their device they're stuck." Griffin told him even as he prepared to Jump with Harry. Harry heard the snapshot of one of the batons before the scream as it hit Millie and dragged her through the wormhole.

"Millie!" David tried to catch her but failed.

"Oh shit." Griffin bit his lip. "Sorry. I really didn't think of that."

"Griffin. David. Someone." Harry moaned and felt his world explode through a rift as Griffin grabbed him. Lights flooded his vision.

"Help me!" Griffin yelled. "Somebody!"

"What happened here?" Someone asked.

"Someone shot him." Griffin told her and Harry was picked up by multiple hands and placed on a bed. He turned and looked at Griffin and reached out a hand. Griffin took it briefly.

"Be careful." Harry mouthed to him before letting his head fall back on the pillow. He felt the rift swallow Griffin up even before the nurses and doctors realised and then the pain was fading as somebody jabbed him in the arm and he just let them get on with it.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

**Shortly afterwards**

It seemed that after they treated him they weren't all that fussed with keeping him under. He woke up in a private room which wasn't surprising since he had no ID on him and he'd been shot so they would keep him captive until the police could question him. He wouldn't be here long enough for that. He pulled the covers off of him to find an almost clean plaster pad on his stomach and as he moved a little he could feel one on his back. His abdomen and the small of his back felt funny and a little numb right now but after edging up a corner of the bandage he saw the little staples and threads that showed they'd done surgery on him and repaired the damage.

He flattened the plaster down and looked around the room. The clock told him he'd been there for only two hours and he also knew that he was in the United States. He Jumped around enough to be able to recognise countries without too much trouble. His clothing was neatly placed on a table under the window, all but his t-shirt and jacket and unsurprisingly his gun holster and knife. At least he hadn't been found with a gun in that holster.

He stayed in bed for another five seconds before sitting up and sliding his feet over the side. He tugged the IV out of the back of his left hand without a care and tore off the chest monitors and then shut the machine up before he stood up a little shakily, clutching his side because he knew he couldn't put pressure on the sutures. He stripped off the hospital gown and dressed as quickly as his damaged body would allow even while his attention was elsewhere. He traced Griffin through the two hour old rift in the hospital lobby through a hundred or more rifts across the world until he was at his limit on the Empire State Building in New York City.

He glanced out of the window and Jumped. He overset a rack of clothing as he appeared in a department store across the road and pulled off the first item of clothing in his own size and pulled the dark red t-shirt over his head with a grunt of effort and pain. He Jumped across the store and somebody screamed but he ignored it as he grabbed a leather jacket off of a different rack and pulled it over his shoulders. His next jump left him in the real world for only a second as his hand grabbed a six inch blade off of a hunting shop's display case before he was gone.

Somebody else screamed and he heard a gun being cocked as he appeared on the top of the Empire State Building and doubled over as his stomach screamed at him. He raised his shirt and saw blood soaking into the bandage. He'd popped a stitch. He'd have to deal with that once he knew David and Griffin were safe. He looked over the edge, ignoring the police officer telling him to get onto his knees. There was a series of rifts down the side of the building. Griffin's and David's. He frowned at the odd behaviour before tracking through the last of them. Then in California, Mexico, Greenland and then Chechnya. That was the last Jump that Griffin had made so he'd either walked from there or was still there. And the last rift was only just closed so he'd only been there fifteen minutes.

He Jumped off of the top of the building and right into the middle of a war zone. Griffin's last Jump had put a truck in the middle of a destroyed building and it looked like a tank had rolled right over it. Something exploded about a mile from him. The battle was well away from him. He focused for a moment and found a Jump from David and tracked his eyes around to mid air about a half mile away, just above a fallen power line. He Jumped closer and his eyes spotted him instantly. There was no sign of David but he'd dumped Griffin into the middle of an electricity pylon presumably just before it fell down to the ground. It had twisted just enough to trap Griffin physically and restrict his power with the residual electricity within the system without killing him.

Griffin was barely conscious but he came awake as Harry levered apart the twisted metal and dragged him away from the electricity even though it sparked him too and made his wound hurt even more. Whatever painkillers had been in the IV had definitely worn off now. He collapsed down to sit on a boulder that probably used to be a building as Griffin stumbled to his feet. "Harry?"

"Griffin." Harry greeted in return. "Who else exactly could track the two of you across the globe? What the fuck were you doing to each other?"

"Arguing." Griffin told him before collapsing next to him. Harry glanced at the twisted pylon.

"He won." Harry chuckled before hissing in pain. Griffin rounded on him and crouched in front of him and lifted his t-shirt. The blood was still only seeping but the bandage was more of less soaked in it.

"You shouldn't have left the hospital." Griffin told him as he dropped the shirt back into place.

"Had to make sure you were okay." Harry sighed. "David too. Where did he go?"

"Don't care." Griffin told him. "He ruined my chance to get Cox."

"He's my brother, Griffin. I promised my mother." Harry sighed.

"That bit..." Harry grabbed him before he could finish.

"Please don't, Griffin." Harry begged. "She always loved David and me."

Griffin gritted his teeth before slumping. "It's too late now anyway. Cox has probably killed him already."

Harry stood up and focused on the rift that had carried David away and through a few more until he gasped. "He couldn't have!"

"What?" Griffin frowned.

In answer Harry Jumped to the United States and a fraction of a second later a disgruntled Griffin followed him. Griffin whistled at the sight before them. "Impressive."

"That'll be his special ability then." Harry summed up staring at the top of the building where the top floor had been ripped off in a massive rift. Twenty or more tonnes at least. Griffin could do that if it was moving but not from stationary. Harry focused on the large rift and appeared a second later in a library nearby. It looked like an explosion had gone off but, instead of fire, water had sent all of the book shelves to the walls and the remains of an apartment sat in the middle of the floor.

A small rift drew his attention to behind him just as Millie emerged from the debris. "The girl's still alive." Griffin commented.

"I can see that, Griffin." Harry frowned around again. He wanted to follow the last rift and catch up to David but Millie could give him answers.

"What happened?" Harry asked.

"How are you not in a hospital?" She asked. "You were shot."

"I'm still shot." Harry snapped. "Where's David?"

"He vanished with that white-haired guy." She told him. Harry turned on the spot and Jumped after David only to find himself in a cave lit by the sun. Not a very big cave. Griffin appeared through Harry's rift as he had been for the last few minutes and whistled in appreciation at the sight in front of them. Roland was rising to his feet but it was David in control of the situation. Roland looked about ready to drop.

"Harry?" David smiled at him.

Harry checked him over with his eyes to make sure he wasn't hiding any wounds before looking at Roland. Roland almost seemed to want to attack but what could he do against three Jumpers. "Go back to your girl, David. We'll handle this."

"Yeah we will." Griffin grinned maliciously.

"Griffin, go with him." Harry ordered.

"What!" Griffin gasped. "No. Harry, I..."

Harry turned to look at him. "I can't let you do it, Griff. Not you. Your mum and dad..." He sighed. "They wouldn't want you to kill him like this."

"He deserves to die!" Griffin spat but his anger wasn't directed at Harry and Harry knew it.

"The blood won't be on your hands." Harry told him simply. "Go with David."

Griffin sneered at Roland before his rift exploded out sending rocks flying. David frowned. "What are you going to do? Harry, you can't just kill him."

"There's a place I know for people like him." Harry smirked nastily and jerked his head. David sighed but Jumped away to return to Millie presumably.

"Boy..." Roland started but Harry wasn't going to wait. He Jumped right behind Roland, grabbed him and vanished into another rift. He wouldn't kill him but only one prison in the world was bad enough for somebody like Roland.

On a stormy island off of the Scottish coastline a prison sat filled with the screams of the inmates as they were forced to live in despair as they relived only their worst memories. Nobody would ever notice that Roland Cox had boosted the inmate numbers and would for the rest of his miserable life.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

**A week later**

Harry woke to find Griffin wrapped around him as normal. They were in a plush hotel in London using Griffin's rather large bank account. Harry doubted any of the money was his own but he really didn't care. The world had taken happiness from them so it owed them as far as he was concerned. Griffin woke and burrowed further into Harry's chest, checked himself when he made to tighten the arm that was over the gunshot wound, before wrapping his arm tightly around Harry's naked waist instead. Harry twisted his head and kissed him on the top of the head and Griffin groaned in appreciation.

"It's time I go home and see Sophie and Mum. Let them know I'm still alive." Harry sighed. "Did you want to come?"

"You trust me not to hurt her?" Griffin asked without looking up at him.

"I trust you not to do anything that would hurt me." Harry told him easily.

"I'll stay here." Griffin sighed. "Don't want to tempt fate."

Harry sat up and Griffin slid off of the bed and stretched. "You're trying to keep me here." Harry grumbled as his eyes slid over Griffin's naked body.

"Maybe." Griffin laughed before tossing Harry his boxers. "Get going before I really try to stop you."

Harry laughed and quickly dressed. He turned to Griffin and Jumped closer and soon had his lips against his, holding his naked form against him. He pulled back. "Love you." He told him happily. "I might have forgotten for a while but I've always loved you."

"Well I never forgot." Griffin kissed his throat. "I've always loved you."

"I'll be back soon." Harry told him.

"Then we're going to Venice for breakfast." Griffin told him with a smirk. Harry tilted his head, grinned in agreement before Jumping away.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

Sophie yelped as Harry appeared in the middle of her bedroom. "Harry!" She threw herself on him. Harry Jumped back out of reach and held up his hands.

"Gently." Harry warned and then opened them and let Sophie hug him. She was careful, not knowing why Harry needed her to be gentle but as she pulled away she fixed him a stare that only a little sister could make. "I got shot by one of Roland's Paladins." He lifted his t-shirt to show the bandage.

"Are you okay?" She went pale.

"It went straight through. Griffin dropped me at a hospital and they patched me up."

"Roland's missing." She pointed out.

"I know. I'm the one that made him missing." Harry grinned.

"You didn't kill him." She frowned. "What did you do?"

"Azkaban." He declared. She smirked and nodded in appreciation. Harry was about to say more when the doorbell down stairs rang.

"I'd better get that. Mum's in her office." Sophie slipped out of the room and Harry followed though he stayed at the top of the stairs and didn't venture down after her. He could see the door when she opened it and spoke to whoever was outside. "Mum!" Sophie yelled after a moment without letting them in. Harry's Mum emerged from the side corridor that led to her office and walked to the door without spotting Harry watching. Her body tensed up at whoever was outside and Harry tensed with her.

"Sophie, why don't you go on upstairs?" She requested. Harry sighed. It was business then. Sophie might technically be a Paladin but their mother always kept her out of anything that she could. Sophie shrugged and walked up the stairs, spotting Harry at the top and leaned next to him. The person outside walked inside and Harry sniggered.

"Who's that?" Sophie asked in a whisper.

"That is David." Harry grinned.

"As in..." Sophie gasped telling Harry that their mum had finally come clean to Sophie too.

"As in our brother." He confirmed. "He looks alive at least."

Sophie punched him and Harry was a little disappointed that he couldn't hear the conversation going on below them but smiled when his mum hugged David gently before showing him out. "Be right back." Harry declared and vanished with a thud that he knew his mum would have heard. He'd be back to talk to her soon enough.

Snow kicked up around him as he appeared half way down the drive and luckily just in front of David. "Harry?" David asked but then his lips broke out in a small smile. Harry closed the gap on an urge and gave him a quick hug and then handed him a number on a slip of paper.

"My number, if you ever need help." Harry told him. "And don't be a stranger to your sister either."

"She's really my sister?" David asked.

"Your mum, your dad." Harry confirmed.

"You okay?" David asked pointing at his stomach.

"Just a little hole." Harry shrugged. "It was worth it."

"Thanks for... you know... looking out for me." He grinned.

"What are big brothers for?" Harry grinned back.

"So not responsible enough to be the big brother." David laughed.

"Who's the one robbing banks?" Harry laughed too before hugging him again. He glanced at Millie waiting the background. "Careful you don't lose her accidentally."

"I won't." David nodded.

"Bye, Davy." Harry Jumped away even as David groaned. Life was good now and Harry wouldn't change a thing as long as he got to keep David and Griffin.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

**The End**


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